WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Bakers Association (ABA) is establishing a Safety Recognition Program beginning in January 2016, announced ABA Safety Committee Chair Max Waagner, Director for Global Safety, Dawn Food Products, Inc., at the ABA Fall Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. The purpose of the program is to recognize individual bakery sites that excel in safety while also increasing workplace safety awareness and emphasizing the importance of employee safety in the baking industry.
“This is an important initiative for ABA that enriches the industry as a whole,” stressed Waagner. “By encouraging development of comprehensive safety and health programs at the individual plant level, we improve morale and reduce expenses related to illness and injuries, a win-win for all.”
Program participation will be open to ABA members with facilities under the jurisdiction of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and OSHA-approved state plans. Award criteria are based on the evaluation of each participating facility’s actual safety performance and implementation of effective safety and health management systems. Actual safety performance will be determined by a facility’s Total Case Incident Rate and the Days Away, Restricted Work Activity.
Official launch of the program will occur in January 2016, with the first awards being presented at the ABA Convention in March 2017.
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About the American Bakers Association:
The American Bakers Association (ABA) is the Washington D.C.-based voice of the wholesale baking industry. Since 1897, ABA has represented the interests of bakers before the U.S. Congress, federal agencies, and international regulatory authorities. ABA advocates on behalf of more than 700 baking facilities and baking company suppliers. ABA members produce bread, rolls, crackers, bagels, sweet goods, tortillas and many other wholesome, nutritious, baked products for America’s families. The baking industry generates more than $102 billion in economic activity annually and employs more than 706,000 highly skilled people.
Source: American Bakers Association
