Achieving Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Compliance

OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) was established in 1979 to recognize and promote effective work site safety and build relationships with companies that have implemented safety and health management systems. The first site was formally recognized in 1982.

Obtaining VPP approval is OSHA’s official recognition of outstanding efforts of employers and employees who have achieved excellence in occupational safety and health. Companies that achieve certification see benefits, including public recognition and lower incident rates, which result in lower costs of medical treatment and increased employee morale.

Maintaining VPP compliance is accomplished through an annual audit. Partnering with ISN has helped VPP-certified sites maintain compliance with program requirements through a variety of tools offered in ISNetworld.

Some of the components of VPP supported by ISNetworld include:

• Contractor Selection – ensuring that safety and health considerations are addressed both during the process of selecting contractors and when contractors are on site.
• Safety and Health Management Systems – encouraging contractors to develop and operate effective safety and health management systems.
• Hazard Control and Tracking – including provisions for timely identification, correction, and tracking of uncontrolled hazards in contractor work areas.
• Contractor Oversight and Regulation – for all contractors, whether regularly involved in routine site operations or engaged in temporary projects such as construction or repair, ensuring they abide by the safety and health rules of the host site.
• Injury and Illness Performance Metrics – obtaining contractor injury and illness data so it can be tracked, trended and analyzed toward program improvement.
• Contract Worker Training – ensuring all levels of contract employees are made aware of the hazards they may encounter while on site, how to recognize hazardous conditions and the signs and symptoms of workplace-related illnesses and injuries, and emergency procedures.

Preparing for a VPP Audit
Through any regulatory or internal audit, preparation for demonstrating the site’s processes and effectiveness are key. Below are a few considerations when starting this:

• Create an audit plan and identify involved parties to review the elements of the audit.
• Prepare, organize and label documents that support the site’s processes and address the various audit elements.
• Engage appropriate departments to conduct a self-review of the worksite safety and health programs to ensure they meet the required elements of the audit.

Resources
Access the following resources to support your self-review and audit preparation:

• OSHA’s Guidelines for Safety and Health Programs
• National Safety Council’s Journey to Safety Excellence
• OSHA’s Safety and Health Program Voluntary Standards Crosswalk
• International Labour Organization’s Guidelines on Occupational Safety and Health Management

Albemarle Relies on ISN to Support its Audits for VPP Compliance
Through his 13 years with Albemarle Corporation, Contractor Management and Security Coordinator Jeremy Hughes has participated in and helped build the company’s processes for continual improvement. An ISN Hiring Client subscriber since 2012, Albemarle embodies the following VPP principles through its use of various tools within ISNetworld.

Contractor Selection & Ongoing Monitoring
Albemarle uses ISNetworld’s configurable scorecard as a mechanism in gathering information on contractors. These standards are set by Albemarle HSE, Corporate Risk, and Purchasing departments. After a contractor has been connected to Albemarle in  ISNetworld, a comprehensive safety survey is completed through a review and score of the pre-qualification metrics, which are reviewed by ISN’s Review and Verifications Services (RAVS) Team.

A scorecard grade is then given to determine a contractor’s eligibility for work.

Safety and Health Training Delivery & Verification
Albemarle also uses ISN’s Online Training Tool to deliver its Site Safety Orientation and Area Specific Training which is verified through the scanning of ISN ID badges upon arrival to the site.

Continuous  Improvement through Benchmarking
Albemarle demonstrates continuous   improvement in its processes and evaluations to maintain compliance through onsite incidents and injury rate tracking and trending using ISN analytics. Metrics are reviewed annually to ensure performance is trending in the correct direction, bringing transparency to everchanging indicators that are driving the statistics, and setting goals for future improvement.

Let ISN Help
For current ISN Hiring Client customers, ISN has additional documents and publications to provide a detailed summary of the tools and services that can be of benefit to help your company get ready for any audit. Contact your account representative to learn about tools in ISNetworld that can support your efforts to achieve VPP compliance.

Are you a Hiring Client interested in learning more about improving workplace safety and becoming VPP audit ready? ISN can help you streamline your health and safety and contractor management programs. Request a demo of our contractor management platform, ISNetworld, to learn more.