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Earn OSHA Safety Star Certification Rain fell steadily on the day of the VPP flag raising ceremony at the Kirkwood Frito-Lay facility but no one seemed to care. Instead everyone was intent on celebrating a prestigious accomplishment that was six years in the making. On Tuesday, June 30th, a ceremony and luncheon celebrated the hard work of the Frito-Lay employees for achieving Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) STAR status, given by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for the plant’s very successful safety program. The Parlor City Boys Choir, from the Discovery Center, sang the National Anthem, and “God Bless America” during the ceremony and Cub Scout Pack 32 from Apalachin led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance. The process for the certification began about six years ago when Frito-Lay headquarters placed an emphasis on motivating safety in its companies. Then two years ago, Pat Zimmer, safety coordinator at Kirkwood Frito-Lay, started the Kirkwood facility, at 10 Spud Lane, Binghamton, down the road to becoming a VPP company. Zimmer said that a majority of the work was done by the employees who run 25 safety programs at the Kirkwood plant. One of the ways the employees watch out for each other is to partner up with one another and then fill out safety cards after every shift. Five key essentials are evaluated before the VPP STAR status is awarded. Management leadership, employee involvement, work site analysis, hazard recognition and control, and safety and health training are areas scrutinized. Several officials, from Frito-Lay and OSHA, spoke regarding how incredible it was that the Kirkwood plant was able to achieve this status as a VPP site. “All of us should be very proud,” said Mike Levy, OSHA Region II VPP manager. “You went above and beyond what most people would consider compliance. I’m very proud that there is a VPP company in my region.” Levy said that the Kirkwood plant is 40% below the average for injuries in their industry and they are also 19% below the average for days away from workplace in their industry, both of which are qualifications for the VPP status. Frito-Lay Kirkwood is now one of 2,239 VPP workplaces, out of seven million businesses in the United States, ( or one of the 0.03% of workplaces in the U.S), who are part of the OSHA program and one of thirty Frito-Lay plants to achieve this standard. Levy presented the VPP Star flag to remind employees to be a shining example to others, to work safely, to take safety to home as well, and to continue to renew their commitment to safety and health. “At Kirkwood, safety doesn’t stop at the end of the day,” said Brian Stringer, manufacturing manager at the Kirkwood Frito-Lay. He explained some of the processes to get to this point, including behavior changes on the floor, traffic teams, and weekly safety reviews. Stringer said that the Kirkwood team was fully committed to every aspect of the process. Tom Jacobs, director of safety for Frito-Lay USA, was also impressed with the great reduction in injuries at Kirkwood. During the entire process of application, overall injuries were reduced by 75% and the Traffic Center has had zero injuries to date this year. But Jacobs also said that being on a pedestal for safety comes with great responsibility. He encouraged the Kirkwood site to become mentors for other companies, just as the Lockheed-Martin company mentored them, so that they might continue the mindset of safety. There was overwhelming employee support for all the safety programs at the site, said Mike Silva, lead auditor for VPP certification, and it was the best site he had ever been to as an auditor. So the Kirkwood Frito-Lay employees have something else to be proud about—their accomplishment will be used, by the VPP team, as a nationwide benchmark for employee support. |
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