October is National Fire Safety Month. Here are a few reminders:
- Report all suspected fire hazards to your supervisor immediately. Use PS Form 1767, Report of Hazard, Unsafe Condition, or Practice.
- Become familiar with the floor plan of your duty station. In case of fire, know the location of and how to use all fire-alarm stations, and the location of all fire exits for your facility.
- Attempt to put out first–stage fires only if you have received training on how to use fire extinguishers and if you believe you can do so safely. If you have any doubt about your ability to extinguish the fire, leave the area. Remember that your own safety comes first. If there is a fire in your building / area, move quickly, but do not run to the nearest exit.
- Do not lock (except with approved fire-exit locking mechanisms) or obstruct exits, passageways leading to fire exits, or fire–extinguishing equipment, such as fire extinguishers, alarm boxes, etc. This equipment must be kept accessible at all times.
It is always better to be proactive rather than reactive. It is best to alleviate hazards during non-emergency times as opposed to times of chaos. Take time now to evaluate conditions and pre-plan your actions. The reality is that fire emergencies and disaster situations can strike anyone, anytime, anywhere. If a fire occurs in your workplace or home, don’t panic, A-C-T: Assess the situation, Choose the best option, Take action.
To continue from last month, the APWU Local 232 plan to embrace the USPS Safety Program and elevate positive change from both Management and Labor is being shared in a series of articles. The following is an installment of how to accomplish such change. The goal is a refreshed attitude toward safety. It is the second step of our ‘long game’ strategy to achieve safer work environments. As some may recognize, we have been engaging in this plan since April of this year.
Part 2 – The Voyage of Understanding –
The Alaska Territory was purchased by the United States in 1867 from Russia by the efforts of Secretary of State William Seward. For 56 years, it remained unvisited by any US President. That was until the summer of 1923 when President Warren G. Harding (a fellow Ohioan from Marion) chose to leave Washington D.C. and travel across the country and visit that remote territory. His feeling was that Washington, with its great separation from the extreme west, could never have a proper appreciation of Alaska’s problems. Harding was motivated to help with those problems. The two-month long trip was called the “Voyage of Understanding”. It was designed to give President Harding first-hand knowledge of the territory and its people who lived and labored there. He also wished to travel across the country to hear from many other Americans. While visiting Sitka, Alaska, it was said, “that by personal contact we would come to know you and we would come to know your vision ……”
There it is, Part 2 of the APWU Local 232 Safety and Health Plan! “That by personal contact we would come to know you and we would come to know your vision ….” It is imperative that we identify with one another and come to understand each other’s circumstances. By way of the Local 232 Safety and Health Committee, we must explore the installations and how those installations integrate with the community. We need to learn of you and the incredible service you perform. We need to become acquainted with Supervisors, and Managers, and Post Masters, and have a professional relationship. We must visit every installation this Local represents and return and return. And the names, the places, the contacts, all this information must be prepared and organized as a tool for future use and reference. (Note the installation pictures included in each issue of the Vindicator from the Safety and Health Committee)
For the ‘long game’ strategy, the implementation of this step will provide a necessary and valued foundation. Safety is for everyone, no matter how remote, no matter how big or small! Here we go Brother and Sisters. For each of you as we embrace our voyage of understanding, be vigilant, be safe!
Tony George
APWU Local 232 Safety Officer