(JTI) located in Muskegon and Norton Shores was awarded the MVPP Star Award, the state’s highest workplace safety and health award, from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA). The MIOSHA program is part of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).
“Johnson Technology’s long-time commitment to workplace safety and health sends a strong message to other Michigan companies,” said LARA Deputy Director Stephanie Comai. “They have created a corporate culture where workplace safety and health is consistently held as a top priority. Their record shows that a safe workplace provides the foundation for a productive workplace.”
MIOSHA established the Michigan Voluntary Protection Program (MVPP) in 1996 to recognize employers actively working toward achieving excellence in workplace safety and health. Since 1999, Michigan has had 29 MVPP Star companies. This is the most prestigious safety and health award given in Michigan.
“National VPP sites experience 60 to 80 percent less lost work day injuries than would be expected of an average site in their industry,” said MIOSHA Director Martha Yoder. “Not only does the MVPP program significantly reduce injuries and illnesses – it also has a tremendous impact on the bottom line.”
The MIOSHA MVPP Review Team consisted of Karen Odell, Team Leader/Safety Specialist and Dave Humenick, Industrial Hygienist. During the review, the team conducted four formal and 19 informal interviews. The team examined various elements of the safety and health management system, and found them to effectively address the scope and complexity of the hazards at the site.
JTI-Muskegon employs 330 workers. JTI manufactures aircraft turbine high pressure nozzle segments and shrouds. The site is properly classified under the North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code 336412 for Aircraft Engine and Engine Parts Manufacturing.
The MVPP assists employers and employees by providing a mechanism and a set of criteria designed to evaluate and recognize outstanding safety and health management systems. The program is designed to establish a cooperative relationship between management, labor, and MIOSHA. MVPP participants implement safety and health management systems that provide protections beyond what is required by MIOSHA standards.
There are two levels of recognition in the MVPP. The Michigan Star program is designed for workplaces that have an exemplary safety and health management system with injury and illness incidence rates below the industry average for the last three years. The Rising Star program provides the “stepping stone” for those establishments that have the desire and potential to achieve Star Status within one to three years. Rising Star participants have a good safety and health management system and have incidence rates at or below the industry average for two out of the last three years.
Current Star sites are available to mentor other companies that have an interest and desire to improve their safety and health management system. Mentors inform, counsel, train, and strive to achieve excellence in safety and health through the MVPP.
JTI is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of the General Electric (GE) Company located on Latimer Drive in Muskegon.
Source: LARA
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