CHSWC releases Workers' Occupational Safety and Health Training and Education Program (WOSHTEP) 2004 annual report

SAN FRANCISCO - The Commission on Health and Safety and Workers' Compensation (CHSWC) has published the Workers' Occupational Safety and Health Training and Education Program (WOSHTEP) 2004 Annual Report.

Labor Code Section 6354.7 creates a Workers' Occupational Safety and Health Training and Education Program (WOSHTEP) that provides injury and illness prevention skills training for employees and their representatives who take a leadership role in promoting safety and health in the workplace.

This Labor Code Section also requires that CHSWC establish an employer and worker advisory board for the program. The advisory board guides the development of curricula, teaching methods, and specific course material about occupational safety and health and assists in providing links to the target audience and broadening the partnerships with worker-based organizations, labor studies programs, and others that are able to reach the target audience.

In addition, the advisory board is required to prepare an annual written report evaluating the use and impact of the programs developed. This report can be found on CHSWC's website: www.dir.ca.gov/chswc.

CHSWC is charged with overseeing the health and safety and workers' compensation systems in California and recommending administrative or legislative modifications to improve their operation. The Commission was established to conduct a continuing examination of the workers' compensation system and of the state's activities to prevent industrial injuries and occupational diseases and to examine those programs in other states.

Information about WOSHTEP is available at CHSWC's home page at www.dir.ca.gov/chswc, by calling (415) 703-4220, by faxing a request to (415) 703-4234, or by emailing chswc@dir.ca.gov. Effective December 1, 2004, CHSWC's telephone number will be (510) 622-3959, and FAX number will be (510) 622-3265.

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