NOTE: This document is provided for historical purposes only.
Sandy Taylor, Deputy Regional Administrator, OSHA Region V
MS. TAYLOR: Welcome to the conference.
I'm Sandy Taylor. I'm the Deputy Regional Administrator for the Chicago Regional Office of OSHA.
I was asked to give the welcome, the warm welcome to this group, being the host city. When I heard that, I kind of cringed, thinking January, Chicago. I can give a nice welcome, but to try and make it warm and make you feel warm, I don't know. And I was a little bit more worried when Monday the weather was about 10 degrees, about 20 below wind chill. Today we've warmed things up for you. It's going to be 30 degrees, I understand no wind chill, no snow today. So that's about as warm as we can get for the winter.
I'd like to welcome you to this conference, Ergonomics: Effective Workplace Practice and Programs. We are pleased to host such a distinguished group for such an important event. This is an unprecedented gathering of leaders in the field of ergonomics.
We are joined today by business, labor, management, government, and academia. NIOSH and OSHA are pleased to sponsor this first ever conference of this kind, one where a tripartite approach was used throughout the entire planning process.
This conference will provide a forum to share practical experience and workplace programs designed to reduce and prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders.
We'll hear from professionals in businesses throughout the country that have instituted a variety of innovative and effective ergonomics programs that have cut rates of musculoskeletal disorders, reduced associated absenteeism, turnover, and lost time, saved workers comp costs, and improved productivity and product quality.
This morning we will start out with a welcome panel, and it will be followed immediately by a keynote panel. There will not be any formal break until 10:15, even though we will be changing panels up here at some point. So please realize that, that we will not be having a formal break until 10:15.
