Advocacy

The printing industry-wide task force organized by SGIA completed its work on developing and submitting consensus comments to OSHA on its latest proposed updates to The Control of Hazardous Energy or Lockout/Tagout (LO/TO) Standard. A meeting with OSHA to discuss these comments has been set up for early November.

SGIA partners with OSHA to put on our first annual Safe and Sound Week. Thirteen member organizations displayed a commitment to management leadership, employee engagement, and fixing hazards and were able to earn Safe and Sound Participant Recognition!

SGIA has released a new Walking Working Surfaces Safety Package. This collection of resources is a comprehensive compliance resource that builds on our Ladder Safety Package. The recent addition of a rule overview booklet, two more posters, and five checklists rounds out the package to be a one stop shop for your WWS compliance needs.

In August 2018, President Donald J. Trump issued Executive Order 13847, "Strengthening Retirement Security in America." The Executive Order called for the Secretary of Labor to clarify and expand the circumstances under which U.S. employers, especially small- and mid-sized businesses, may sponsor or adopt an ARP or Multiple Employer Plan as a workplace retirement option for their employees.

Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) introduced the Zero Waste Act, which creates federal grants to support municipalities in recycling and waste reduction efforts. The recently introduced legislation provides federal funding to help municipalities invest in waste recovery and reduction initiatives. The program would be carried out by the U.S. EPA and would be funded with up to $250 million from 2020 through 2027, according to the bill text.

Governor Janet Mills has signed into law a bill that prohibits the use of phthalates and PFASs in food packaging materials. Maine’s legislation imposes a ban on the sale of food and beverage packaging and their components (including inks and labels) as well as disposable plastic food service gloves when a phthalate has been intentionally added over trace amounts. SGIA continues to represent the industry on this issue.

The US Department of Labor (US DOL) has issued a proposed rule to expand the apprenticeship model to new industries. Under the National Apprenticeship Act, the US DOL is seeking to establish a process for recognizing Standards Recognition Entities which in turn will recognize Industry Recognized Apprenticeship Programs. The Trump Administration, recognizing the existing skills gap, began to address this issue in 2017. SGIA has long supported the creation of additional workforce development strategies and policies to help the industry address its recognized skills gaps.

Gary Jones and Heather Nortz of SGIA were thrilled to represent the Sustainable Green Printing Partnership (SGP) at the 7th annual Green Sports Alliance Summit held in Philadelphia, PA this past June. There was a fantastic group of attendees with a passion for sustainability that fostered productive discussion about sustainability throughout many supply chains. At the SGP booth, many attendees were able to gain knowledge about how to ensure their printed products are sustainably produced!

SGIA responded to the request from the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) for comments on their proposed cleaning solvent rule. The rule would set VOC and/or vapor pressure limits on a variety of cleaning solvents used by business and industry that are not otherwise regulated.

After significant pressure from SGIA and other industry groups, OSHA decided to not revise the Lockout/Tagout or Control of Hazardous Energy Standard. The proposed change, while seemingly innocent involved simply removing one word, “unexpected” from it. While it is only one word, it represents a concept in the standard that literally allows the printing industry to operate its equipment in both an economical and safe manner.