FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Steve Rank, IMPACT Western Region, (916) 784-9144
WASHINGTON, D.C. - On June 28, 2011, General President Wise received a response letter from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that clarifies key regulations contained in the OSHA Subpart CC - Cranes and Derricks in Construction standard pertaining to signal person training and documentation.
Representatives from the Iron Workers International and the Ironworkers Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust (IMPACT) aggressively pursued regulatory clarifications from the Agency to recognize the use of Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee’s (JATC’s) to administer training as a “qualified evaluator (third-party)” for the purpose of evaluating signal person qualifications.
Additionally, the Agency has validated the use of our “certification cards” to satisfy the requirement for work site documentation of training for qualified signal persons.
The International Association has established JATC’s throughout the United States as an independent entity with expertise to provide training and accurately assess the “Qualification Requirements” contained in OSHA’s crane standard. In an effort to maintain the highest level of training and compliance, the National Ironworkers and Employers Apprenticeship Training and Journeyman Upgrading Fund (NIEATJUF) has instituted the “Ironworker Apprenticeship Certification Program” (IACP) to conduct audits, evaluations and assessments of training facilities. Special requirements of the IACP and JATC’s ensure that our training facilities are provided with expert training personnel and assessment protocols that comply with the requirements of a “qualified evaluator (third party).”
We are pleased that the Agency has issued a written clarification that recognizes and validates the efforts of the NIEATJUF, IACP and JATC’s that serve as an independent entity, and are competent in accurately assessing whether individuals meet the Qualification Requirements for signal persons.
About IMPACT: IMPACT is a labor management partnership based in Washington, D.C., designed to provide a forum for union Ironworkers and signatory contractors to address mutual concerns and encourage reasonable, balanced solutions to construction and employment issues.
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