OSHA announces free Safety Fest 2016 training in Honolulu and San Diego

Event open to workers, employers, health professionals

The old adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” holds true today. While many use this quote when referring to health, Benjamin Franklin actually said this in regard to fire safety. In 1735, Franklin argued that prevention of a catastrophic citywide fire was certainly preferable to rebuilding a burned city from scratch.

Embracing this concept, Safety Fest was first introduced more than 10 years ago to provide free occupational safety and health training to the community. The event’s focus is on providing quality, relevant training to businesses that have the desire, but lack the resources, to enhance and improve the safety of their workforce. Safety Fest offers access to imperative training courses that prepare attendees for both foreseeable and unforeseeable situations, ultimately saving lives.

While these courses normally cost hundreds of dollars on average, they will be available during this event free of charge. Attendees will also receive materials and a certificate of attendance. The event is open to employers, employees, contractors, professional technical educators, all businesses required to follow OSHA standards, and anyone interested in creating a safer workplace.

UC San Diego’s OSHA Training Institute Education Center is proud to host the 2016 Pacific Coast Safety Fest in two different locations

• San Diego, CA on March 16-17 (pacificsafetyfest.com/registration/san-diego-ca)

• Honolulu, HI on March 17-18 (pacificsafetyfest.com/registration/hawaii)

Enrollments are still being accepted and pre-registration is highly encouraged as seating is limited.

This unique, once-a-year fest brings together the best of the best in safety instructors of the region presenting a series of safety and health courses focusing on many areas of concern, including:

• Safety and health management.

• Job hazard analysis.

• Whistleblower laws and regulations.

• Heat illness prevention training.

• Fall protection program.

• Record-keeping related to safety issues.

• Health and fall hazard awareness.

• Construction hazard control and recognition.

Why has Safety Fest proven so valuable in the past? According to UC San Diego instructor Van Howell, one presenter who has been involved in Safety Fest since the beginning, “the most exciting part is the exchange of information between the students and trainers. Everyone has their own story and experiences. These stories and experiences from adult students provide for an interesting training environment.” More than that, “Safety Fest has been a highlight of my career in safety and health,” Howell explained. “I honestly believe Safety Fest has saved lives.”

And saving lives should be everybody’s goal. According to leading safety organizations such as the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) and National Safety Council (NSC) it makes financial sense too.

To paraphrase Benjamin Franklin, a day of training is worth a life saved.