By Dorothy Wigmore
“NJEA members have a legal right to safe and healthful working conditions. Your employer, the board of education, is responsible for ensuring that school employees and students are not exposed to hazardous conditions.”
That’s the introduction to NJEA’s health and safety web page.
Behind the scenes, the statewide union Worksite Safety and Health Committee focuses on the topic, based on themes of solidarity and prevention.
“It’s a structured way to collaborate,” says the committee chair, Keith Hinton. “It helps ensure workplaces meet state and federal safety standards, identifies and addresses hazards before they become serious issues, and promotes a climate of prevention.” Health and safety in schools is an important issue for members because it directly affects their well-being, their ability to do their jobs effectively and the overall learning environment for students.”
A long-time educator in East Orange, and president of the East Orange Education Association, two health and safety issues are close to Hinton’s heart: indoor air quality and job-related violence.
He’s not alone. Violence also is a hot topic for Tomika Lamb, a Willingboro fourth grade math and science teacher, and local association treasurer. She’s represented Burlington County on the state committee for six years.
The former social worker wanted to give back after NJEA helped her around a possible health hazard.
“I figured I can help other people that are going through different issues with health and safety within the school,” she says. “There’s been an uptick in violence among the students towards the staff. We want to make sure that we advocate for them. It’s not just mold or lead or air quality, but it’s also making sure that the members are safe, as well as the students.”
Without a district health and safety committee, NJEA members have no easy way to prevent or deal with health and safety hazards.
Too many members don’t know they have a right to health and safety and lack a local committee, says Heather Sekela, Cape May County’s newest representative.
“The biggest thing we’re dealing with right now is that districts around the state don’t have a health and safety committee to begin the process of handling problems,” she says. “Our job is to get the word out that every school district should have a health and safety committee to handle things locally first. If members want to start a committee, they can always call on the state committee, and we’ll give them the guidance and support.
“You don’t deserve, and should not have, to work in a situation where your roof is leaking, you’re under construction, etc.,” Sekel explains. “I think it’s important for local committees to help people realize they deserve better.”
Some people just put trash cans under a leak, and work around them, she adds, “because they don’t want to cause waves, and they don’t think of it as ‘we deserve a healthy, safe environment’. I like the fact a health and safety committee can stand up for them, giving people a voice for their own safety and health.”
If local committees can’t get things fixed, they can go through their UniServ representative to the NJEA staff representative for health and safety, Mike Rollins, and the state committee.
How does the state committee work?
The committee meets at least four times a year to discuss school hazards in the counties each member represents, sharing experiences about dealing with them and lessons learned. They keep tabs on relevant pending state legislation, providing recommendations to organizational leadership concerning the association’s position.
“One job we have is to bring our local problems to the state committee and say, ‘This is how we handled this,’ ‘What should we do next?’” Sekela says. “It’s to let the local committees know they have a place to go if they’re having trouble.”
Lamb agrees. “If they have issues, they can always come to us.”
“The state committee is important because we can bounce ideas off each other when we come together as a collective,” she says. “We talk about different issues that each county may be having, and we get suggestions on what to do, sometimes ones we might not have thought about, and guidance too, about what are the laws and what we can do to make sure the problem is resolved.”
As the newest state committee member, Gerry Fancera, who coordinates maintenance and custodial work at Sussex County Technical High School, is still learning. Co-vice president of his local association, he joined the committee because a teacher he works with suggested he would be a good fit.
“I think you need coordination from a bigger entity [like the state committee],“ he says. “If you have mold, or asbestos, or pest issues, there are proper steps you need to take. I have a lot to bring to the party that others aren’t educated on.”
Current committee goals include:
- Advocating for state bills.
- Addressing the increase, and handling, of aggressive behaviors.
- Keeping members up to date.
- Giving out the first-ever NJEA “Clarence Osbourne Worksite Health and Safety Award”
- Maintaining existing health and safety committees, while encouraging creation of new ones.
- On-going trainings for educational support professionals (ESPs) and certificated staff.
February conference offers health and safety training
The last goal is behind the union’s Feb. 6- 8 Health and Safety Conference. It’s for all NJEA members, Hinton says.
“It offers valuable, up-to-date training … to equip staff with knowledge, practical strategies and statewide support that strengthens the health and safety of every school,” he says. “It’s an investment in your workplace, your voice and the well-being of the entire district.”
Dorothy Wigmore is a long-time health and safety specialist and WEC consultant. She has worked in Canada, the U.S. and Mozambique, focusing on prevention and worker participation to fix job-related hazards.
Resources
NJEA Worksite Safety and Health Committee
NJEA
NJEA Review
“Health and safety committees Knowledge + Action = Change”
“Where to begin? Resources for tackling health and safety hazards”