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Minutes 09-08-03 MINUTES OF THE SAFETY COMMITTEE MEETING HELD IN THE FIRE/POLICE TRAINING ROOM, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2003 AT 10:00 A.M. Present Tom Balfe, Chairman John Bebensee, Vice Chair Barbara Madden, Secretary Mark Bobich Bill Coup Eric Falstad Glenda Hall Brenda LeVant Carisse LeJeune Chuck Magazine Glendon Morgan Barbara Scott Tim Valentine Parks Recreation City Clerk Utilities Library Golf Course Public Works Communications City Manager Risk Management ITS Police/Code Compliance Fire Department Absent Dominic DeMauro Mike Rumpf Dorothy Mack Warehouse Development Human Resources I. Call to Order Chairman Balfe called the meeting to order at 10:05 a.m. II. Roll Call The Secretary called the roll and declared that a quorum was present. Chairman Balfe requested that Vicki Rogerson's name on the distribution list be changed to Vicki Robertson. II1. Acceptance of Minutes of August 11, 2003 Regular Meeting Motion Mr. Magazine moved for approval. Motion seconded by Mr. Coup and unanimously carried. IV. Safety Committee Education and Training Program Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida September 8, 2003 None V. Old Business A. Fire Drills Division Chief Valentine will invite Deputy Fire Marshal Borden to attend the October meeting to review the proper procedures for fire drills. B. "Proud to be a Safe Worker" Awards None C. Departmental Inspections & Safety Meetings (C. Magazine) Mr. Magazine distributed an updated matrix for safety meetings and safety inspections. Mr. Morgan noted that he submitted copies of ITS' safety meetings and Mr. Magazine will check into this. D. Defensive Driver Course (C. Magazine) Mr. Magazine reported that he is still working with ITS on getting the program on line. Barry Brandenburg of the ITS Department is working with Mr. Magazine to get the program up and running. Mr. Bobich inquired if the workbook version was still available, and Mr. Magazine stated that it is not. The new version, however, will come with a workbook for persons taking the course. E. Incident Review Board None F. PPE Changes Mr. Magazine reported that the changes recommended by the Committee to the Personal Protective Equipment are now available on the sharedrive. Mr. Bobich noted that some of his staff had concerns whether the changes applied to "job descriptions" or "work function." When this question arose, he spoke with Mr. Magazine, who informed him that it applied to "work function." Mr. Magazine noted that the PPE equipment listed under Customer Service Department did not apply to the customer service employees that work on the first floor in City Hall. Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida September 8, 2003 Ms. LeJeune asked about the status of wearing nitrile gloves for employees that open the mail. Mr. Magazine noted that this has been changed to require latex or nitrile gloves, which would be determined by each Department that opens mail. Ms. Madden reported that the Clerk's Department is now stocking nitrile gloves. Mr. Bobich noted that some of the requirements contained in the PPE are requirements that are included in the Safety Manual. He suggested that some of these be moved to the Safety Manual, since they are safety issues. Mr. Magazine was agreeable with this and will look into it. Ms. Hall said that she and Chairman Balfe have been discussing the new requirement that employees must now wear goggles when mowing. She pointed out that currently employees that mow wear safety glasses, and she did not see the need for employees riding mowers to wear goggles. Chairman Balfe requested that under the category "Grounds Maintenance" for "mowing/trimming/blowing" that "mowing" be listed as a category E1 and "trimming/blowing" would remain E2. Mr. Magazine pointed out that there have been incidents where employees who were mowing and wore safety glasses, still received eye injuries. Ms. Hall did not think that employees wearing only safety glasses while mowing could receive eye injuries since all the lawnmowers have mulching decks, which means there is no discharge. Mr. Falstad also did not think that the mowers at the Golf Course could cause any eye injuries as well. There was a consensus among the members that this be changed into two categories, as requested by Chairman Balfe. Mr. Bobich inquired if "Printing" and "Typesetting" should be combined into one category. Mr. Coup inquired if this was necessary at all, since the City no longer has these job categories. Members agreed to delete those two categories. Mr. Bobich also questioned the category of head protection for "Stock Clerk." Since no one was present from the Warehouse, Chairman Balfe will include this on next month's agenda. Chairman Magazine pointed out that the Committee has reviewed the PPE several times and requested that changes and updates only be made on a yearly basis. With regard to the pigeon problem that had been discussed at the last meeting, Mr. Magazine reported that he has been working with the Facilities Department and they are in the process of putting something together to rid the open second floor area of the pigeon problem. It is anticipated that the area will be fenced so that the pigeons would no longer have access. VI. New Business Ms. LeVant noted that there have been questions raised in her Department regarding the City's dress code and the requirement of wearing shoes. Mr. Magazine stated that employees must wear shoes. Ms. LeVant felt that females wearing open toe shoes are Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida September 8, 2003 a safety hazard and could get hurt. Ms. LeVant would like clarification on this because she does not allow these types of shoes to be worn in her Department, yet she sees them being worn in other departments. Ms. LeJeune suggested that the Safety Committee make a recommendation to the City Manager's Office since this is where the original City's APM dress code originated. Ms. LeJeune also stated that there have been discussions about what constitutes a "sandal." Ms. LeJeune pointed out that open toed shoes and open backed shoes without a strap are not included in the City's dress code. Chairman Balfe noted that their was an incident before the Incident Review Board that involved a worker who received an injury wearing an open toe shoe when a piece of a mannequin fell on her foot. Ms. LeVant has an employee that walks around without wearing proper shoes, whom she has warned several times, One day this employee broke two toes when she bumped into a desk. Chairman Balfe inquired if there was anything in the dress code policy that required women to wear closed-toe shoes. Ms. LeJeune stated that the dress code addresses sandals, but sandals are not defined. Mr. Magazine said that this would be a very difficult situation to keep under control. He pointed out that the Town of Palm Beach was not successful when they tried to set up a dress code policy. Ms. LeJeune recommended that this Committee make a recommendation that shoes must be closed-toe and that there must be a strap on the back of the heel. This would keep the foot secure. Mr. Magazine pointed out that if a minimum standard were set, it must be properly defined. Ms. LeVant said that she would research dress policies of other cities and report back at the next meeting. The question was asked if a shoe policy were put into effect, how would this be monitored, and Mr. Magazine stated that Department heads and supervisors would be fully responsible for enforcing it. Ms. LeJeune stated that this should apply to any employee that wears improper attire. If an employee reports to work with improper shoes or attire, that employee should be sent home without pay to change into approved footwear or attire. Members felt that this could result in lawsuits on the part of a supervisor. If a person was not wearing approved footwear and was not sent home and then hurt herself on the job, it would be the responsibility of the supervisor. Ms. LeVant felt that it was the supervisors' responsibility to ensure that their staff was wearing proper footwear to prevent accidents and to prevent the City from being sued. VII. New Business A. Departmental Safety Issues Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Meeting Boynton Beach, Florida September 8, 2003 None B. Other Chairman Balfe asked members for suggestions to improve upon the number of departments that perform safety meetings and safety inspections. Mr. Bobich thought that there were departments that held safety meetings, but failed to document them. Mr. Magazine suggested that when departments have their regular staff meetings, they should devote part of that meeting to safety, which would constitute a safety meeting. Further, Mr. Magazine stated that if departments posted the times and dates of their regular meetings that incorporated safety meetings, either Chairman Balfe, Vice Chair Bebensee or himself could attend some of these meetings. It was noted that it was difficult for some departments to schedule meetings on a regular basis because their staff works in shifts. For documentation purposes, all that would be needed was to show that a safety meeting took place by furnishing Mr. Magazine a copy of the agenda, signed by all attendees. Chairman Balfe asked Ms. Scott if it would be possible to conduct some kind of safety meeting at the Police Department, perhaps during roll call or when the officers meet to discuss other issues. Ms. Scott pointed out that it would be difficult since the Officers work 11%-hour shifts and she could only be present at one shift. Mr. Magazine stated that Ms. Scott did not have to be present and that a supervisor could handle it. Mr. Magazine explained that the purpose of having safety meetings was to have discussion and interaction among the staff on safety issues. Chairman Balfe said that he would be glad to assist Ms. Scott in getting these meetings incorporated in the Police Department. Mr. Magazine inquired who the Training Officer was and was informed it was Sgt. Kelly Harris. Mr. Magazine will speak with Sgt. Harris. Division Chief Valentine stated that they hold quarterly safety meetings that function along the same lines of the IRB. He also pointed out that although the entire staff cannot attend these meetings, all information that emanates from the meetings is disseminated to everyone. He noted that the Fire Department constantly looks for better ways and safer ways to do business and this is an ongoing process. With regard to inspections of the stations, Division Chief Valentine stated that this also is a constant duty that takes place everyday. Mr. Magazine requested that Division Chief Valentine merely forward some documentation monthly on these inspections. Mr. Magazine said that he would get together with Division Chief Valentine to come up with some way to document these daily inspections. Division Chief Valentine said that he would furnish Mr. Magazine employees' training hours that have the various divisions listed. Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Meeting Boynton Beach~ Florida September 8~ 2003 Vice Chair Bebensee asked about the status of the Safety Manual that is now in Human Resources for review. Mr. Magazine stated that he has spoken to John Jordan about some items in the Safety Manual. He suggested that Vice Chair Bebensee speak with Mr. Jordan to see if he has any changes or additions. If there are no changes, Vice Chair Bebensee should email the Safety Manual to everyone. Chairman Balfe displayed the radio cases that would be used to hold the hand-held radios. This item will now be stocked in the Warehouse, and Chairman Balfe requested that each department determine how many they would need and to let Mr. DeMauro know so that he could order the appropriate amount. The cost is $42 each. Chairman Balfe explained that a belt can be drawn through the case so that it would not fall off. He also pointed out that the case blocks the emergency button, which prevents it from going off accidentally. Mr. Magazine reported that he has denied three claims for lost or broken radios for people who did not have cases for their radios and this information was relayed to all departments last year. VII. Announcements None VIII. Next Meeting Date: Monday, October 13, 2003 at 10:00 a.m. Thero being no further business, the meeting properly adjourned at 11:10 a.m. Respectfully submitted. Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (September 8, 2003) 6