270680 Building a National Network of Health and Safety Activists through Training and Policy Advocacy

Wednesday, October 31, 2012 : 9:30 AM - 9:50 AM

Jessica E. Martinez, MPH , National Council for Occupational Safety and Health, Los Angeles, CA
The National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH) supports a network of health and safety activists throughout the country that engages and gives voice to local work addressing the need of vulnerable and low-wage immigrant workers. In the United States, immigrant workers constitute a significant proportion of the workforce and unfortunately also suffer a disproportionate high level of workplace injuries and fatalities. To address this, National COSH has designed local training programs that develop worker leadership enabling them to use tools to identify hazardous working condition, control them, and support policy for action that supports stronger enforcement of OSH laws and regulations. This session will present a national network model that successfully develops and implements worker training that leads to action planning and policy advocacy by newly empowered OSH activists. The session will provide an opportunity for discussion among participants to share experiences of organizational or network models that develop worker leaders, create training for action, and advance policy advocacy, such as worker committees, coalition building, and partnerships.

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Occupational health and safety

Learning Objectives:
1. Discuss a successful network model to promote training for action and advancing policy 2. Identify strong and effective partnerships that establish a holistic approach to addressing worker needs. 3. Analyze effective training models that develop OSH activists.

Keywords: Occupational Health Programs, Training

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Ms. Martinez serves as the Assistant Director for the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health. She contributes her many skills to project trainings, program planning and implementation, and network development. She served as Program Coordinator for the UCLA Labor Occupational Safety and Health (LOSH) Program and Coordinator for SoCalCOSH committing herself to the promotion of safety and health within the labor movement with a special focus on immigrant and young worker populations.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.