Employees of the County of Wayne now have a formalized safety policy along with an official safety committee working on their behalf. Vicki Lamberton, Chief Clerk, pointed out at Thursday’s Commissioner meeting that the County as an employer has always made safety a priority and had an informal committee. Formalizing the committee and policy was recommended by the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP)’s insurance program.
Randy Heller, the Solid Waste Coordinator, spoke on behalf of the Safety Committee. He said they first met May 9th and have had another meeting since then. The committee will conduct quarterly building inspections and review accident reports submitted by employees, to see what changes are needed to improve risk factors.
County departments and each major county building are represented on the nine-member committee. They are required to meet six times a year.
Their Worker’s Compensation insurance agent, Robert Turano, had conducted a presentation with the committee.
Commissioner Tony Herzog said it was good that formalizing their safety program was a good thing, noting their employees do a wide variety of tasks, from casework to operating industrial lifts, each job carrying its own inherent risks.
Chairman Brian Smith said that each employee should receive a copy of the safety policy statement, which the Commissioners approved at the meeting. “It is our belief that most accidents are preventable,” the statement reads in part. It goes on to say that the Commissioners have allocated resources for a proactive loss control program. Each department head is responsible and will be held accountable for the loss control performance in that department.
John Haggarty, who is Business Manager, has been named Safety Coordinator to oversee the Loss Control Program.
“All employees are responsible for cooperating with and supporting our Loss Control Program activities and objectives,” the statement continues. “All employees are expected to adopt the concept that the safe way to perform a task is the most efficient and only acceptable way to complete the task.”
Commissioner Wendell Kay said that the formal policy will benefit all county employees and county taxpayers as well.
Julianne Doyle, who is on the committee, said that safety-related posters will be put up.
Other actions
• Two county MH/MR caseworkers were hired: Karie James, Honesdale, and Andrea Gately, Starlight.
• Kristie M. Altmann, Hawley, was hired as a part-time trainee, Drug & Alcohol Prevention Specialist.
• Two part-time, on-call van drivers were hired: G. Ronald Sporer and Dickson C. Brown, both of Honesdale.
• Michelle L. Palmer, Hawley, was hired as a Food Service Worker, and Margaret M. Witt, Hawley, as a part-time Food Service Worker.
• Part-time corrections officers were hired: Owolabi Ogunleve, Damascus; Melissa Shafer, Greentown; Gregory VanWyckhouse, Honesdale and Nicholas Collins, Prompton.
• Donald Olsommer was appointed to the Wayne County Planning Commission to represent Sterling, Dreher and Lehigh townships. This was a spot held by Vicki Lamberton, who needed to resign due to relocating to Lake Township.
• In presenting the 4th Quarter Report (ending June 30) for the Medical Assistance Transportation Program, Andrea Whyte, director Wayne County Department of Human Services, noted that the county provided 7,761 trips in that quarter for people with medical access cards.
The County Commissioners meet on Tuesday and Thursday at 10:30 a.m. at the Courthouse.