ARTICLE 18
HEALTH AND SAFETY
18.1 The State remains
committed to providing and
maintaining healthy and safe working conditions, and to initiating and
maintaining operating practices that will safeguard employee health and safety in an effort to eliminate
the potential of on-the-job injury/illness and resulting workers'
compensation claims.
18.2 The State and PEF shall establish
a Joint Health and Safety Committee. The Joint Health and Safety Committee shall study
and review matters of mutual concern in the areas of health and safety; shall serve as a forum in which PEF can advise the State of potential health or safety problems; shall
serve as a forum in which PEF can advise on the development and implementation of State policy in all matters related to health and safety; and shall serve
as a means by which pro-active
measures to improve health and safety at the worksite can be developed and implemented.
18.3 The Joint Health and Safety Committee
shall consist of three designees of the Director of the Governor's
Office of Employee Relations and three designees
of the President of PEF. The Committee
shall meet at least quarterly.
The Committee shall establish by agreement
such operating procedures, tasks
and goals as it deems necessary to conduct its activities. In the case of a failure of the
Committee to reach agreement on any matter, such
matter shall be referred to the Professional Development and Quality of Working Life
Coordinating Committee for resolution.
18.4 The Joint Health and Safety Committee
shall use such
funds as are made available to it pursuant
to Article 18.12 by the Professional Development and Quality of Working Life
Coordinating Committee to
undertake initiatives in the general areas of education, support of agency-level and local-level health and safety
committees, and study and research. Subject research,
subject to the agreement of the Committee and the availability of funding from the
Professional Development and Quality
of Working Life Coordinating Committee , sSpecific
activities of the Committee ma y include, but are not
limited to, the following:
·
Development
and implementation of programs to enhance the knowledge and skills of
employees, management officials and union representatives
in the identification and correction
of health and safety problems.
·
Development and implementation of a health and safety grants program
to provide financial support to the activities of agency-
level
and local-level health and safety committees.
·
Participation in a smoke-free
environment in all Indoor Air
Quality improvements at
requesting worksites by
providing assistance to agency-level and local-level health and safety committees in the joint development of worksite smoking policies consistent with the general
guidelines adopted by the
Statewide Committee Indoor
Air Quality training, education and awareness programs.
·
Development
and implementation of programs to provide
agency- level and local-level health and safety committees with current information about health and safety issues including, but not limited to, the
operation of a Health and Safety Resource
Center, indoor air quality, video display terminals ergonomics, violence and assaults on
employees, infectious
disease control, ergonomics, and right- to-know education.
18.5 The Committee
shall identify issues of mutual concern in the area of asbestos, and
shall develop and implement
activities to address such mutual concerns.
18.6 Agency-Level
and Local-Level Health and Safety
Committees
(a) The State and PEF shall establish joint health and safety committees
at the agency and local levels. Such committees shall have at
the agency and local levels the same functions as those of the State- level committee.
(b) Agency and local health and safety committees shall meet at least quarterly. Agendas shall be exchanged
in writing by the parties
at least seven days before each meeting , and
additional matters may be placed on the agenda
only by the agreement of both parties.
(c) A local-level health and safety committee that has reviewed a local health and safety issue but has been unable to agree
on the disposition of that issue shall refer that issue to the appropriate agency- level
health and safety committee for review
and resolution.
(d) An agency-level health and safety committee
that has reviewed
an agency-level or local-level health and safety issue but has
been unable to agree on the disposition of that issue shall refer that
issue to the Statewide Health and Safety Committee for review and resolution.
18.7 Coordination
of Health and Safety Activities
In recognition that health and safety are worksite matters that
affect
all employees at a worksite, regardless of negotiating unit, the Joint Health and Safety Committee and the agency-level
and local-level health and safety committees shall make appropriate efforts to integrate their activities with the health and safety activities of State departments
and agencies and joint health and safety committees established by the State and other State employee unions. Such
efforts shall not preclude State/PEF health and safety committees from acting independently.
18.8 Toxic Exposure
(a) Employees who are directly exposed to toxic substances as a
result of an accident, an
incident or a disco very previously
undetected by the State or the employees, will have the opportunity to be medically
screened as appropriate at State expense. Such medical screening
will
be offered provided
commonly accepted scientific evidence exists to indicate that the exposure
presents a clear and present
danger to the health of the affected employee.
(b) It is incumbent
on the State to identify substances used by
employees or to which they are exposed within the workplace. Where a substance is identified
as being toxic , prior to any clean up or removal of the substance , the State will determine
the nature of the substance, the toxic properties of the
substance , and the safe and recommended method of working with the substance
including the appropriate personal protective equipment necessary
when working with the
identified substance.
18.9 Safety
Equipment
Safety equipment
such as safety shoes, safety goggles, hardhats, vests, etc., which are officially
required by departments and agencies for use by employees shall be supplied
by the State.
18.10 Those departments
or agencies in which there is a potential for occupational exposure to HIV,
HBV, and TB,
as determined by the New York State
Department of Labor, shall establish
and promulgate policies consistent with generally accepted
medical practices, New York State
Department of Health Guidelines, and New York State Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Standards and Enforcement
Guidelines.
18.11 Health and
Safety Grievance Procedure
Grievances alleging a violation of this Article, or alleging the existence of any safety
violation, or otherwise arising
from a health and safety condition
or dispute shall be subject to review
through the procedure established in Article 34, Section 34.1(b) of the
Agreement and shall not be arbitrable.
18.12 The State shall prepare, secure introduction
and recommend passage by the Legislature of such legislation as may be appropriate
and necessary to obtain an appropriation of $303,000 for Fiscal Year 2007-2008,
$523,000 for Fiscal Year 2008-2009, $598,000 for Fiscal Year 2009-2010 and
$688,000 for Fiscal Year 2010-2011 to fund the programs of the Joint Health and
Safety Committee.