State Fund comes to Havre High to teach, provide equipment for, work safety

Safety is the most important thing for the rising workforce and it is important they know and understand their rights and responsibilities while on the job, Montana State Fund Safety Consultant Sophie Magnuson said to Havre High School shop class students Wednesday.

"As you guys are out there, working in your shop classes and getting jobs out there in the workforce, just keep that stuff in mind and really anticipate some things that could go wrong so you guys could hopefully avoid them," she said.

Montana State Fund, Montana's largest workers' compensation insurance company, gave a presentation to a number of shop class students and presented the teachers with a grant of about $1,500, which was used to purchase personal protective equipment. The equipment included safety items such as personal eye protection, fall protection gear, gloves and ear protection. Montana State Fund has already given out more than $30,000 worth of protective equipment to schools across Montana this year through its Growing a Safer Montana initiative. 

"Montana State Fund is committed to improving Montana's workplace safety culture," Montana State Fund President and CEO Laurence Hubbard said in a press release. "One of the ways we believe we can do that is by teaching and reinforcing positive safety habits in the classroom, before our kids enter Montana's workforce. The goal should always be to send our students and workers home safely to their families at the end of each day."

Havre High School was one of 25 Montana high schools to receive the grant as part of the Growing a Safer Montana initiative, which began in 2018. Schools can reapply for the grant every year.

The release said Montana is among the highest in the nation in workplace accidents and fatalities.

"The high accident ranking is believed to be a symptom of Montana's safety culture," it said. "... The grants are meant to engrain the importance of safety in young people, before they enter the workforce."

Havre High School teachers Tyler Kropf, auto technology, and Chris Comp, welding technology, applied for the grant at the end of last year, Comp said. He added that in addition to the application they were given a list of protective equipment they could select. He and Kropf each applied for $750 and both were awarded the grant.

Comp said the grant was a good resource for the school and students because not every student has the money to be able to afford protective equipment

"It's expensive," he said.

He added that it was the first time the grant was made available and the equipment will help ensure the classrooms and students are safe during the year.

It was also a benefit to have representatives from Montana State Fund give a presentation to the students about safety and the resources available to them, such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, he added.

"It was a really good presentation," he said. "... Safety first."

During her presentation, Magnuson told students that as the rising workforce - people who are younger than 25 years old - they are two times more likely to be in an accident at work and it is important for them to learn at an early age how to be as safe as possible while at work. It is important to teach the younger generation before they are able to learn bad, dangerous habits.

She added that, as workers and as students enrolled in shop class, they have rights. She said that their rights include access to protective equipment, proper training on how to perform their jobs safely and training on how to handle emergency situations, such as fire drills or an injury on the job site. 

Employees also have the right to workers' compensation and scheduled breaks, she said. If someone is working a four-hour shift they are entitled to a 10-minute break. If someone works longer than a five-hour shift they are entitled to at least a 30-minute meal break.

She added that if an employee also sees a task or job as immediately dangerous to their life, they have the right to not do the task or job until the conditions are made safer.

Magnuson also told the students a few phrases they could use if they encounter a scenario in which they are in danger:

• "I don't feel safe." She added that is is hard for people to dispute someone's feelings of being in danger.

• "I feel like there is a safer way to do this." She said that people who have worked a job for a long period of time may not realize that safer methods are available.

• "I don't feel like I've been trained adequately enough." She said that is huge for people, asking, how can a person perform a task safely if they have not had adequate training on how to perform a task or duty?

She added that another big thing is not saying they will not do the job but asking for help so they can perform the task or duty safely.

Employees also have the right to join a union if they wish to, she said, as well as the right to report any hazards or safety risks to the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration. She added that OSHA has an anonymous reporting line available, 1-800-321-OSHA or 1-800-321-6742.

In addition to the rights students and workers have, they also have responsibilities on the job site, she said.

"If you were trained, you have a responsibility to do the job the way you were trained," she said.

It is the employee's right to have access to personal protective equipment, but it is the employee or student's responsibility to wear it and use it, she said.

"That's very important," she said.

People also have the responsibility in an emergency situation to have an awareness of the situation and act accordingly. 

"It's important to speak up and let people know that there is a hazard," Magnuson said.

Both the employers and employees have the responsibility to keep a work area clean, she added, having a clean work area helps prevent accidents. OSHA can cite people for having a messy job site or work station.

She said the second part of the Growing a Safer Montana initiative is to make students aware Montana State Fund also offers scholarships for trades, such as welding, automotive and construction trades, and scholarship opportunities for higher education in safety and health.