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Not all businesses aware of new OSHA requirements
Posted by: Becky Gillette with MS Business Journal
Most common types of business that don’t have to keep OSHA record-keeping forms include drug stores, liquor stores, new and used car dealers, hardware stores, retail bakeries, insurance agents, real estate agents, barbershops and beauty shops, and general services.
Even with penalties of up to $7,000 for failure to report serious workplace injuries, a report by OSHA estimates that only about 50 percent of severe injuries in the U.S. are being reported within the required period. The revised rule that went into effect in January 2015 didn’t change previous requirements to report all work-related fatalities within eight hours, but it added a requirement to report all work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and loss of an eye within 24 hours to OSHA.
The failure to report may largely be an oversight, not intentional. Small businesses that didn’t fall under reporting requirement earlier may not be aware of a new law, even though there are plenty of opportunities out there for employers to get this information.
“Every time we do an outreach, whether giving speeches to various trade groups or employee associations, we bring up the fact that severe illnesses and injuries have to be reported within 24 yours,” said Eugene Stewart, area director for OSHA in Mississippi. “There is information on our website about the new reporting requirements. There are consultants out there relaying that information. There are quite a few avenues out there for employers to get this information or they can call the local OSHA office.”
Stewart said before the rule took effect, there was no requirement for employers to report an amputation or a hospitalization of an employee.
“There was no information shared with us about those incidents,” Stewart said. “We would get inquiries from the media asking about cases where people had been injured. Now because that information is required to be reported, we can respond and almost immediately make sure employers are taking steps to prevent those injuries and illnesses to employees. We also used to get complaints from injured employees regarding hospitalizations and amputations not being required to be reported.”
Stewart said the information helps OSHA to understand where problems are so they can be resolved.
An employee injury, of course, can be very traumatic for the employee. But it can also be devastating to any employer.
“We are not talking just about lost production or the loss of the services of that one employee,” Stewart said. “It is also going to have an big impact on the morale on other employees not involved in the incident. There is an effect on family members of employees who were injured. It can also have an effect on the community. A lot of employers prefer not to have negative publicity reflected on their place of business. The employer doesn’t want to be known as a place where you don’t want to work. It is in the employer’s best interest to make sure all safeguards are in place, employees are wearing all necessary safety equipment, and that workers are given the necessary safety training and education on how to do their job safely.”
OSHA said more reporting of accidents will significantly enhance the agency’s ability to target its resources to save lives and prevent further injury and illness. “This new data will enable the agency to identify the workplaces where workers are at the greatest risk and target compliance assistance and enforcement resources accordingly,” OSHA said.
OSHA said the rule is also intended to improve access by employers, employees, researchers and the public to information about workplace safety and health, and increase OSHA’s ability to identify and abate serious hazards.
The rule updates the list of industries that are exempt from the requirement to routinely keep OSHA injury and illness records due to relatively low occupational injury and illness rates. The previous list of industries was based on the old Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system and injury and illness data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from 1996, 1997, and 1998. The new list of industries that are exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records is based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and injury and illness data from BLS from 2007, 2008, and 2009.
Stewart said businesses with ten or fewer employees are not required to maintain OSHA records, but still have to report fatalities, amputations, and hospitalizations. The m
Injuries can be reported by calling OSHA’s free and confidential number at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742), by calling the closest area office during normal business hours (the number for the Jackson area office is 601-965-4606) or using a new Serious Event Reporting Online Form at https://www.osha.gov/pls/ser/serform.html.
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Yelp: A Property Manager’s New Online BFF
Jeremy Lawson, NALP, reputation manager at Fogelman Management Group, describes four ways Yelp could serve the apartment industry.
Most people equate Yelp.com with restaurants and hotel reviews. Yet, the third most popular use for this site is to look up and review home and local services like apartments.
Yelp is a growth area for the apartment industry. As consumers rely more heavily on online reviews, Yelp presents an opportunity for property managers to expand their Internet footprint, says Jeremy Lawson, NALP, reputation manager at Fogelman Management Group, a multifamily company that manages more than 75 properties nationwide and has had a partnership with Yelp for more than a year.
“One of the things I always look at when looking at products and services is, how is it going to impact our end users, our property managers, our site teams?” Lawson says. “I found after quite a bit of research that Yelp is one of the products that we could all utilize to make our jobs easier.”
Lawson is joining John Carroll, manager of local business outreach at Yelp, as a speaker for the “Yelp Can Help! So Much Information, So Little Time” session at the National Apartment Association’s Education Conference & Exposition on June 17, in San Francisco.
In an interview with Marketing Buzz, Lawson describes Yelp as a “hidden gem” for the apartment industry. Here are some reasons why:
1. Users represent the industry’s customer base.
Individuals who are smart, educated, tech-savvy and whose incomes qualify them for higher-end apartments represent one of the largest renter segments in the country who are using Yelp. As of the fourth quarter of 2015, Yelp’s average monthly mobile visitors reached 86 million. This correlates strongly with what’s going on in the apartment industry, where 50 percent of all traffic now comes from mobile email.
2. Technology is user-friendly.
Yelp has a very easy-to-use smartphone app. It is integrated into a number of different platforms—not just to your phone but to sites such as Yahoo and Bing, and even to newer model cars with GPS systems. “As an industry, we have information in so many different places, the easier we can make it to update, the better,” Lawson says. “And Yelp does that for us.”
Someone searching for an apartment can pull out her phone, look up “ABC Apartments” on the Yelp app or Apple Maps, and see a display of reviews or get directions to the apartment community. In the meantime, property owners can use Yelp to make updates to their information, such as a phone number or the hours the office is open.
3. Yelp is strategic about posting reviews.
The site doesn’t permit all reviews to be posted. It wants quality reviews from credible users, so it’s a little more strategic about which reviews it recommends on your listing. “It’s not like many other sites where anyone can go on there and blast you,” Lawson says. “That’s a benefit to us, because we have a bad taste in our mouth for some of the review sites that are out there.”
To encourage active users to post reviews, those who use their phones to “check in” to a location for a certain apartment community on Yelp may get a pop-up message on their phone at a later date, asking them to share their thoughts. “Yelp is going to ask them, ‘What did you think of ABC Apartments? Leave a review’,” Lawson says. To encourage this activity, Fogelman places signs in its office to prompt people to look up the company
on Yelp.
4. You can interact with customers.
Yelp doesn’t remove reviews because, like most websites, it wants that active data and content. What property managers can do is set up a Yelp account that allows them to engage with customers and reply to reviews.
“That’s ultimately what we have to do as an industry to build our online reputations,” he explains. “We have to engage with our customers on all of those review sites. Yelp is a little more strategic about what gets puts out there, but that makes it even more important that you reach out and reply to those customers.” If a user posts a bad review, a property manager on Yelp has the opportunity to reach out with a personal invitation to address concerns.
“Another benefit to Yelp is, you can’t leave a review anonymously. You have to set up a profile. That’s a really big benefit because, as property managers, we can find out who the reviewer is, and reach out to them, giving us an additional opportunity to overcome any challenges we have.”
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NAA Amenities Survey: Your Help Is Needed
NAA is conducting research on value added to apartment buildings as a result of adding and/or upgrading amenities. Through this survey, our research will identify the greatest returns on investment as well as explore recent trends in amenity and renovation activity throughout the U.S. How do your amenities stack up against your competitors? Which ones provide the most value?
You are encouraged to participate in this survey. All participants who complete the required questions will receive a free copy of the report, as well as entry into a drawing for an iPad Pro (please provide your contact information). Otherwise, you may take the survey anonymously, unless you wish to be contacted as a potential case study. Individual responses to the survey will remain confidential and will only be used at the aggregate level. The report will be available for sale this fall.
Depending on the volume of recently-added amenities and/or renovations to your property, this survey will take anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes to complete. You may leave the survey and pick up where you left off and/or edit previous responses on the same device. Please complete one survey for each property. After clicking done, go back to the survey link to start a new survey for each additional property. We request that you complete the survey by Friday, Aug. 12.
If you prefer to complete this survey in an interview format by telephone, or if you are having any difficulties taking the survey, please contact Paula Munger at 703-797-0614 or pmunger@naahq.org.
Thank you for taking the time to participate. We look forward to sharing our insights with you.
Take the survey now!
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Proposed By-Law Changes
This year, a Bylaw Committee was formed to review the bylaws and, if needed, propose recommended changes. The Bylaw Committee consists of MAA members Jennifer Welch (Chair), Arthur Blankenship, and Frank Buchannan. A letter listing the proposed changes were mailed out on Friday, July 18th to the membership.
Under the current bylaws, amendments are addressed under Article XI. Section 1:
These By-Laws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members present plus valid proxies at any regular or special meeting of this Association provided that a copy of the proposed amendment(s) have been mailed to each member not less than thirty (30) days prior to the meeting at which action on such amendment(s) is to be taken.
To review a red-lined version of the current bylaws or to print a proxy for an absentee vote, click the link below.
Red Line Version of Current Bylaws
Proxy for an Absentee Vote
The August members meeting will be held at River Hills Club on August 18, 2016. A vote on these bylaws will take place promptly at 11:40am. Should you wish to send a proxy, those can be emailed to our Affiliate Executive at Meghan@msaptassoc.org by Monday, Augusts 15th.
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At the beginning of the meeting, we will be voting on proposed bylaw changes. The voting process will take place at 11:40 and then we will resume the meeting.
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Download Registration Form
Download Conference Volunteer Form
Full Conference Price- $75 Per Person
Pay Per Session- $30 Each
Registration Forms are due by September 12, 2016. All attendees will be invoiced regardless of attendance after the cut-off. Email completed form to Meghan@msaptassoc.org or mail to 228 Avalon Circle Brandon, MS 39047. For questions call Meghan Elder at 601-992-9933
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Mid-America Apartments has put together the 6th Annual BBQ Fundraiser to support Open Arms, a foundation that provides housing for families in medical crisis
Orders will be taken starting July 18th through August 19th
-Boston Butt Donation: $40 – Receive a fully prepared Boston Butt (6-8lbs) and a Bottle of Sauce.
-Ribs Package: $25 – Receive a fully prepared Full Slab with a Bottle of Sauce
-BBQ Lover Weekend Package: 1 Boston Butt, 2 slabs of Ribs and 2 bottles of sauce
All proceeds from the sale of this barbecue will go to support Open Arms and families in need.
For more information contact Delia House at 601-856-8525 or Delila.House@maac.com
Download Order Form
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