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Section
A. Employee and Union Rights
1.
Employees
have the right to a safe and healthful workplace, to refuse dangerous
work, to adequate personal protective equipment, to safety and health
training, to a proper medical program for workplace injuries and
illnesses, and to a reasonable alcoholism and drug abuse policy.
2.
The
Union has the right to participate in active and informed Joint Safety
and Health and Environmental Committees to appoint Union health and
safety representatives, to join in regular safety audits and accident
investigations, to receive full and continuing access to all information
(including all OSHA reports), and to participate in programs which
address certain special hazards. The Company will provide the Union
Safety Department with prompt telephonic notification of the basic facts
concerning any fatality at the worksite, followed by a written
communication. The Company will also provide the Union Safety Department
with a copy of any fatal accident report.
3.
The Company will develop and implement, with the involvement of
the
Union
, policies and
programs for ensuring these rights.
Section
B. The Right to a Safe and
Healthful Workplace
1.
The Company will provide safe and
healthful conditions of work for its Employees and will, at a minimum,
comply with all applicable laws and regulations concerning the health
and safety of Employees at work and the protection of the environment.
The Company will install and maintain any equipment reasonably
necessary to protect Employees from hazards.
2.
The Company will make every
reasonable effort to ensure that all equipment is maintained in a safe
condition. Its inspection
and maintenance program will give top priority to equipment critical to
Employee safety and health. Where
faulty equipment creates an abnormal risk to Employees, the Company will
take all necessary steps to eliminate the risk.
3.
The Company will provide suitable
heating and ventilation systems and keep them in good working order.
Section
C. The Right to Refuse
Unsafe Work
1.
If
an Employee, acting in good faith and on the basis of objective
evidence, believes that there exists an unsafe or unhealthful condition
beyond the normal hazards inherent in the operation (Unsafe Condition),
s/he shall notify his/her immediate supervisor.
The Employee and the supervisor will make every attempt to
resolve the condition in the interest of safety. Thereafter, s/he has
the right, subject to reasonable steps for protecting other Employees
and equipment, to be relieved from duty on that job and to return to
that job only when the Unsafe Condition has been remedied. The Company
may assign the Employee to other available work in the plant, consistent
with this Agreement and without displacing another Employee.
2.
If
the Company disputes the existence of the allegedly Unsafe Condition,
the Grievance Chair and the Plant General Manager or their designees
will immediately investigate and determine whether it exists.
3.
If
after the investigation it is determined that the condition existed, the
Employee will be made whole for any lost time in connection with the
condition. If after the
investigation the Company does not agree that an Unsafe Condition
exists, the Union has the right to present a grievance in writing to the
appropriate Company representative and thereafter the Employee shall
continue to be relieved from duty on the job. The grievance will be
presented without delay directly to an arbitrator, who will determine
whether the Employee acted in good faith in leaving the job and whether
the Unsafe Condition was in fact present.
4.
No Employee who in good faith
exercises his/her rights under this Section will be disciplined.
5.
If an arbitrator determines that an Unsafe Condition within the
meaning of this Section exists, s/he shall order that the Condition be
corrected and that the correction occur before the Employee returns to
work on the job in question and the Employee shall be made whole for any
lost earnings.
Section
D. The Right to Adequate
Personal Protective Equipment
The
Company will provide, without cost to the Employee, effective protective
equipment in good working order when required by law or regulation or
when necessary to protect Employees from injury or illness.
Such equipment includes, but is not limited to, goggles, hard
hats, safety glasses, hearing protectors, face shields, respirators,
special-purpose gloves, protective clothing and harnesses.
The Company may assess a fair charge to cover loss or willful
destruction by the Employee.
Section E.
The Right to Safety and Health Training
1.
All
Employees will be provided with periodic safety and health training.
In addition, before the initial assignment to a particular job,
Employees will receive training on the nature of the operation or
process; the hazards of the job; controls in place; safe working
procedures and the reasons for them; the purpose, use and limitations of
the required personal protective equipment; and other controls or
precautions associated with the job.
Such training will also be provided when the job changes in a way
that affects the nature or severity of the hazards.
2.
All
training programs will be fully discussed and reviewed by the Joint
Safety and Health Committee. The
Company will make a reasonable effort to use Employees chosen by the
Union Co-Chair of the Joint Safety Committee as trainers and will
instruct trainers in effective teaching techniques.
Upon request, the
Union
’s Health, Safety
and Environment Department (Union Safety Department) will be provided
with a copy of all training materials and be afforded the opportunity to
review the training.
Section
F. The Right to a Proper
Medical Program for Workplace Injuries
and Illnesses
1.
The Company will provide first aid
equipment and trained personnel in close proximity to each of its
facilities. The Company will
provide Employees who are seriously injured on the job with prompt
emergency transportation to an appropriate treatment facility and return
transportation to the plant.
2.
An Employee who, as a result of an
occupational injury or illness, is unable to return to his/her assigned
job for the balance of the shift on which s/he was injured will be paid
any earnings lost on that shift.
3.
The
Company will make medical screening for occupational illnesses available
to Employees or retirees (who work or retire after the Effective Date)
in jobs where a government agency requires screening.
4.
The Company will not require any
Employee to submit to any medical test or answer any medical history
question that is not related to the Employee’s ability to perform
his/her job.
5.
The
Company will maintain the privacy of reports of medical examinations of
its Employees and will only furnish such reports to a physician
designated by the Employee with the written authorization of the
Employee; provided that the Company may use or supply such medical
examination reports of its Employees in response to subpoenas, requests
by a governmental agency authorized by law to obtain such reports and in
arbitration or litigation of any claim or action involving the Company
and the Employee. Upon written request by the Employee, the Company will
provide the Employee with a copy of the Employee’s medical records at
no cost to the Employee. All
medical examinations will be conducted by or under the supervision of a
licensed physician.
6.
If
a Company physician detects a medical condition that requires further
medical attention, s/he will advise the Employee of such condition.
Section
G. The Right to a Reasonable
Policy on Alcoholism
and
Drug Abuse
1.
Alcoholism and drug abuse are
recognized by the parties to be treatable medical conditions. The
Company and the
Union
agree to establish an Employee Assistance Program (EAP), administered
and funded by the Company, to facilitate the rehabilitation of Employees
afflicted with alcoholism or drug abuse.
The EAP will utilize professional and Employee peer counselors
and will operate under conditions of strict confidentiality.
2.
The Company may require an Employee
to submit to a medical evaluation performed by qualified personnel,
which may include a drug or alcohol test, only where there is reasonable
cause, based on objective evidence, to believe that the Employee is
legally intoxicated or impaired by drugs on the job.
Employees involved in an accident will be tested only when an
error in their coordination or judgment could likely have contributed to
the accident.
3.
Employees will not be required to
submit to drug or alcohol testing for any other reason, unless such
testing is required by law.
4.
Drug and alcohol tests will utilize
scientifically accepted methods for evaluating impairment.
When a biological sample is taken, a portion will be retained for
retesting, should the Employee dispute the initial results.
5.
Employees who are found through
testing to have abused alcohol or drugs will be offered rehabilitation
in lieu of discipline. However,
this provision does not affect the right of the Company to discipline
Employees for violation of plant rules or for working or attempting to
work while knowingly impaired.
Section
H. The
Union
’s Right to
Participate in a Joint Safety
and
Health Committee
A
Joint Safety and Health Committee (Joint Safety Committee) will be
established at each facility to be composed of the Local Union
President/Unit Chair and the Plant Manager and no less than three (3)
additional members or no more than one (1) for each department as
designated by each Co-Chair. The
parties will designate their respective Co-Chairs and provide each other
with updated lists of the members of the Joint Safety Committee.
The
Joint Safety Committee will have the following functions: participating
in the design of Company safety and health programs, including strategic
planning; assisting in the establishment of safe job procedures;
overseeing and participating in plant safety and health audits
(including annual comprehensive audits of the entire plant); reviewing
plant safety rules; participating in the investigation of workplace
accidents; reviewing accident, injury, illness and other statistics
related to safety and health; participating in the design of safety and
health training programs; reviewing proposed changes in plant technology
or operations for their impact on Employee safety and health;
participating in the selection of personal protective equipment;
discussing the Company’s response to proposed regulations and
legislation affecting safety and health; participating in and reviewing
the results of safety and health inspections or industrial hygiene
monitoring by OSHA, MSHA, and NIOSH; collecting and responding to safety
and health concerns raised by individual members of the Joint Safety
Committee or Employees; and working together to promote an awareness of
safety and health hazards and safe work procedures.
The
Joint Safety Committee will hold periodic meetings at times determined
by the Co-Chairs, but no less often than monthly. Either Co-Chair may
call a special meeting of the Joint Safety Committee.
The Union members will be afforded time to meet privately as
needed to prepare for meetings of the Joint Safety Committee.
The
Company and the
Union
will each keep
minutes of meetings. Prior
to every regular meeting, the Company will prepare a written response to
concerns or action items noted at the previous meeting, as well as any
open items from previous meetings. The
two (2) sets of minutes, or a jointly agreed reconciled version, along
with the Company’s written response to concerns and action items, will
be included in the official record of the meeting.
The
Company will not make any changes to plant safety and health programs,
policies or rules; introduce new protective equipment or eliminate
existing protective equipment; or modify safety and health training,
unless the Joint Safety Committee has been notified and the Union has
been provided the opportunity to discuss the change.
The
Joint Safety Committee will not handle grievances, although it may
discuss safety and health issues that have led to a grievance.
The
Company, in cooperation with the Union Safety Department, will provide
annual training for members of the Joint Safety Committee.
The Company will pay the reasonable cost of training materials
and facilities, as well as necessary expenses and earnings in accordance
with local plant understandings.
Members
of the Joint Safety Committee will be afforded access, consistent with
their own safety and the safety of the operation, to all operational
areas of the plant, upon notification to the appropriate management
representative. The director
of the Union Safety Department or his/her designee will be allowed
access to the plant upon notification to the Company.
The
Company will provide an office in a convenient location in the plant for
the exclusive use of Union members of the Joint Safety Committee.
The office will be equipped with a telephone and a computer.
The
Union members of the Joint Safety Committee will be compensated in
accordance with standard local plant understandings for all hours spent
on Committee work.
The
parties will sponsor an annual safety and health meeting, attended by
Union members of the Joint Safety Committee from each plant covered by
this Agreement, appropriate Company counterparts and members of the
Union Safety Department. The
Company will pay reasonable travel expenses, other expenses and earnings
determined in accordance with the standard local plant understandings.
Section
I. The
Union
’s
Right to Participate in Environmental Issues
1.
A
Joint Environmental Sub-Committee of the Joint Safety and Health
Committee will be established at each location, composed of an equal
number of Employees designated by the
Union
and the Company. The
Joint Safety and Health Committee will meet regularly to discuss
environmental issues affecting the Company and to make appropriate
recommendations.
2.
The
Company will make available for review to the Joint Safety and Health
Committee all environmental reports, monitoring results, analyses,
materials received from the EPA and other agencies, and any other
documents related to the Company’s environmental program and
obligations.
Section
J. The Right to Union Safety
and Health Representatives
1.
The
Union
will appoint a
full-time safety and health representative at each plant. These
representatives will work with the Company safety and health
representative under the direction of the Union Co-Chair.
2.
Full-time
Union safety and health representatives will receive their Regular Rate
of Pay applicable to the job held immediately before becoming a
full-time safety and health representative.
3.
The Joint Safety Committee, Company Safety and Health Department
and Union Safety Department will cooperate in designing and implementing
training for Union safety and health representatives.
Section K.
The Union’s Right to Participate in Accident Investigations
1.
When
an accident occurs that results, or could have resulted, in a serious
injury, the Company will immediately notify the Union Co-Chair of the
Joint Safety Committee who will have the right to immediately visit the
accident scene, or to assign another Union member of the Joint Safety
Committee to visit the accident scene, consistent with his/her safety.
The Joint Safety Committee will investigate all such accidents and
prepare an accident report. The
Company will provide the Joint Safety Committee with full access to the
accident site and any information relevant to understanding the causes
of the accident.
2.
If
the Company requires an Employee to testify at the formal investigation
into the causes of an accident or disabling injury, the Employee will be
advised that s/he may have a Union representative present at the
proceedings. The
Union
will be furnished
with a copy of the Employee's testimony.
3.
No
Employee will be disciplined or discriminated against in any way solely
for suffering an injury or illness or for reporting an accident. The
Company will not establish any program, policy, practice or work rule
that might discourage Employees from reporting accidents, injuries or
illnesses.
Section
L. Carbon Monoxide Control,
Toxic
Substances
and Harmful Physical Agents
1.
The
Company will routinely perform engineering surveys of hazards, periodic
in-plant industrial hygiene sampling and testing for harmful physical
agents at each location covered by this Agreement.
The survey, to be conducted by qualified personnel, will list
locations from which significant amounts of carbon monoxide, toxic
substances and harmful physical agents could escape, the conditions
which might cause such a release, and the steps necessary to minimize or
control the hazard. The
survey will be updated annually and whenever significant changes are
made to the gas-handling system or procedure.
2.
Based on sampling and surveys, the Company will implement a
program for the control of such hazards including engineering and
equipment changes necessary to eliminate or reduce the hazards
identified in the survey; necessary amendments to safe job procedures;
the installation and regular testing of fixed automatic monitors
equipped with alarms; the use of portable monitors; regular inspection
and maintenance of testing equipment; provision of an adequate number of
approved breathing apparatus appropriate for emergency operations and in
locations readily accessible to Employees; Employee training including
regular drills; an emergency rescue program with appropriate rescue and
trained personnel; and the investigation by the Joint Safety Committee
of all incidents which involve the accidental releases of such hazards,
cause an alarm to trigger or result in an elevated level of
carboxyhemoglobin in any exposed person.
The Joint Safety Committee will review the survey and the program
whenever it is updated.
Section
M. Ergonomics
The
parties will establish a program to identify ergonomic risks in the
plant and recommend controls.
Section
N. Safety Shoe Allowance
On
October 1 of each year, each Employee, other than a probationary
Employee, will be provided a voucher for use at local vendor(s)
designated by the Company for the full purchase price from an approved
list of one (1) pair of safety shoes for the Employee’s use at work.
Section
O. No Union Liability
The
Company has the exclusive legal responsibility for safety and health
conditions in the plant and for environmental matters.
Neither the
Union
nor its
representatives, officers, employees or agents will in any way be liable
for any work-related injuries or illnesses or for any environmental
pollution that may occur.
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