GOTHENBURG, Neb. − The U.S. Department of
Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has recognized the
management and employees of the Monsanto Gothenburg Water Utilization Learning
Center and Breeding Facility for excellence in the company's safety and health
program. The facility in Gothenburg has been designated a "star," the highest
honor in OSHA's Voluntary Protection Programs.
The facility, which employs about 30 workers who conduct
corn hybrid testing and development, earned VPP star recognition following a
comprehensive on-site evaluation by a team of OSHA safety and health experts.
"From the top down, the Monsanto
Gothenburg Water
Utilization Learning
Center and Breeding Facility has
displayed outstanding effort in implementing a comprehensive safety and health
management system," said Charles E. Adkins, OSHA's regional administrator in Kansas City, Mo.
"The facility is an exemplar of workplace safety."
The Voluntary Protection Programs recognize private and
federal work sites with effective safety and health management systems that
have maintained injury and illness rates below national Bureau of Labor
Statistics averages. Management, labor and OSHA work cooperatively and
proactively to prevent fatalities, injuries and illnesses through a system
focused on hazard prevention and control, worksite analysis and training.
Union
support is required for applicant work sites where employees are represented by
a bargaining unit. Participating work sites are exempt from OSHA programmed
inspections while they maintain their VPP status.
For more information, contact
OSHA's regional VPP manager in Kansas
City, Mo., at
816-283-8745 or visit http://www.osha.gov/dcsp/vpp/index.html.
