The Susan Harwood Training Grant Program awarded $10.1 million in grants to 70 nonprofit, community and faith-based organizations; employer associations; labor unions; joint labor/management associations; and colleges and universities.
The grants, from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), will fund education and training programs for workers and employers in recognizing workplace safety and health hazards and prevention measures, and inform them of their rights and responsibilities.
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Target audiences include young, underserved, and limited English proficiency workers in high-hazard industries and small business employers.
“These grants reflect the department’s commitment to ensuring all workers and employers have the tools and skills to identify hazards and prevent injuries,” said Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez.
“By further advancing a culture of workplace safety and health, we help to eliminate the false choice between enhancing workplace safety and productivity.”
Approximately $1.6 million in targeted training grants went to 18 organizations not included in the FY 2012 program. OSHA has designated the following topics: Fall protection in construction; agricultural safety, including grain handling operations; hair and nail salon hazards; ergonomic hazards; hazard communication for chemical exposure; injury and illness prevention programs; and workplace violence.
OSHA also awarded approximately $8.5 million in follow-on grants to 52 of the FY 2012 capacity building developmental grantees that performed satisfactorily during the last year and submitted awardable applications this year. These grantees demonstrated their ability to provide occupational safety and health training, education, and related assistance to workers and employers in high-hazard industries as well as small-business employers and vulnerable workers. They should institutionalize organizational capacity to provide safety and health training on an ongoing basis.
Click here for more details about OSHA’s 18 new Harwood grantees and 52 follow-on grants.