4/15/05 - Promoting safe and healthy working conditions for employees of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), its contractors and sub-contractors is the goal of a newly signed alliance between the U.S. Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the MBTA.

Under the alliance, OSHA and the MBTA will develop and deliver job safety and health training and education programs for MBTA employees as well as employees of construction contractors and subcontractors working on MBTA construction and renovation projects.

The training will focus on helping workers identify and address work-related safety and health hazards. Areas to be covered include railway work zone hazards, the four major construction hazards (electrical, fall, struck-by and crushed-by hazards), and hazards associated with ventilation, equipment use and storage and the use and limitations of personal protective equipment. OSHA and the MBTA will also work together to develop and share hazard identification and program evaluation tools.

"This alliance demonstrates the excellent working relationship between OSHA and the MBTA and our common goal of enhancing the safety and health of transportation and other workers," said Marthe Kent, OSHA's New England regional administrator. "This joint effort seeks to equip these workers with the skills and resources to identify and prevent workplace hazards before injuries or illness occur."

Signing the alliance were Kent; Brenda Gordon, OSHA's area director for Boston and southeastern Massachusetts; Richard Fazzio, OSHA's area director for Middlesex and Essex counties; Michael H. Mulhern, MBTA general manager; William A. Mitchell Jr., MBTA general counsel; James M. Coyle, secretary treasurer - general agent, Building and Construction Trades Council of the Metropolitan District; and Stephan G. MacDougall, Local 589, Boston Carmen's Union.

OSHA health and safety alliances are part of U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao's ongoing efforts to improve the health and safety of workers through cooperative partnerships. OSHA has created more than 230 alliances with organizations committed to fostering safety and health in the workplace.

Employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. OSHA's role is to assure the safety and health of America's workers by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual improvement in workplace safety and health. For more information, visit www.osha.gov. 

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