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For immediate release: June 12, 2012
BWC Increases Funding for Safety Councils
Additional funding strengthens commitment to workplace safety and injury prevention
COLUMBUS - Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) Administrator/CEO Steve Buehrer today announced a 10-percent
increase in funding provided to support Ohio's 80 safety councils, which work to increase safety awareness in the workplace
and educate businesses on occupational safety and health issues. Buehrer announced the increase today during a meeting
of the Licking County Safety Council in Newark.
"Safety councils bring together safety-conscious employers in a community to learn and share best practices, and are
among the best and most effective resources to help us make injury prevention a priority in Ohio workplaces," said Buehrer.
"My hope is that this funding increase will not only assist safety councils in continuing to provide high quality services,
but increase membership and inspire new program features for the employers we serve."
BWC's Division of Safety & Hygiene sponsors safety councils that are organized across the state by local safety-minded
groups to inform participants of new safety techniques, products and services, and provide a thorough knowledge of topics,
including occupational safety and health, workers' compensation and risk management education.
BWC provides the annual funding to sponsoring organizations to underwrite a portion of administrative costs. The funding
is based on the attendance average of each council's ten highest attended meetings in the previous calendar year.
"The work of Safety Councils can have a very real impact in the workplaces of our members, whose participation
demonstrates their commitment to maintaining safety as their highest priority," said Vicky Crist, Licking County Safety
Council Manager. "We value our ongoing partnership with BWC and appreciate BWC's recognition of the very important
work going on each day all over the state to prevent workplace injuries."
The statewide safety council funding for fiscal year 2013 will be effective July 1 and will total $911,650 with the
increase.
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