The safety managers located at Customs Management Centers also perform safety inspections and provide training and advice to managers, supervisors, and employees. During FY 2002, 221 safety inspections were completed, and nearly 1,600 employees were trained in safety measures, including over 800 trained in confined space entry procedures.

We talked to several Customs safety managers about their work in preventing injuries. Their comments reflect their dedication to keeping Customs employees safe.

Customs injury statistics 28% are from strains and sprains 23% are from slips, trips, and falls 14% are unknown or miscellaneous 12% result from being struck by, or striking against an object 10% are from cuts, lacerations, dog bites, and puncture wounds 5% result from exposure to a hazardous material or communicable disease 5% are from motor vehicle accidents 3% are the result of human violence

How are safety managers recruited?
Gary McMahen: Our safety managers were recruited from private industry, the Department of Defense, and other federal agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Department of Veteran Affairs. They are responsible for assessing workplace hazards and recommending effective injury prevention strategies to managers. They evaluate a wide variety of work tasks, from inspecting the hold of a cargo ship and examining hazardous materials, to working on a computer terminal in an office. Gary McMahen oversees the entire Customs safety program.

Alberto Ramos: The Collateral Duty Safety Officers (CDSOs) are an extension of the safety managers and are a great help to us, to supervisors, and to their co-workers. The CDSOs are there on the ground and frequently the first ones to alert us to potential safety problems.

What special initiatives are you working on?
Douglas Rupard: Right now, we are analyzing work processes and identifying the hazards and corrective measures that need to be taken so that employees don't get hurt. If we're doing a JHA on inspecting baggage at the airport, we work with the inspector, who explains the steps to us to identify potential hazards. Supervisors also participate in the JHA. The entire process may take a few hours. A vessel boarding JHA may take a few days, depending on the type of cargo and the type of inspection they're doing.

Gary McMahen: The completed JHA allows supervisors to establish safe procedures, train their employees on the safe way to do the job, and to identify the appropriate personal protective equipment the employee must use when performing that work assignment.

Juan Garcia: Fitting the Occupational Health and Safety Administration's (OSHA) standard to our work environment sometimes presents problems. The industry standard for preventing exposure to tuberculosis for instance is geared more toward the hospital setting where you have isolation rooms, but OSHA wants us to fit it to our law enforcement situations. We are working to resolve the differences with OSHA so that we can operate under practical, but safe standards.

Kathryn Shell: I do a lot of work in ergonomics such as computer work station design and back injury prevention. At our ports along the Mexican border there are a lot of back injuries, particularly when doing vehicle searches, because the inspectors have to lift out spare tires. So, we're working on a program for safe lifting procedures. Shell worked with the U.S. Public Health Service last fall to develop a training program for the canine officers, emphasizing proper lifting techniques and stretching/exercise to prevent shoulder injury.

JHA leads to a safer workplace Juan Garcia, South Texas Area Safety and Occupational Health Manager, and Supervisory Customs Inspector Bonita Brumfield recently conducted a JHA at the Port of Laredo that looked at the steps involved in conducting a vehicle inspection in the secondary area. There were 12 basic steps identified in the JHA, which identified 33 hazards that have the potential to cause injury or illness to employees working in that area. After reviewing the potential hazards, the team of Garcia and Brumfield made recommendations that could be implemented to remove or reduce the potential for injuries. For example, wearing leather work gloves while examining areas in and around the vehicle will help prevent cuts and punctures from sharp edges and burns from hot engine parts. Using proper lifting techniques or seeking assistance when lifting or handling heavy or bulky items such as spare tires, vehicle parts, contraband, etc., will reduce the risk of muscle strains or back injuries. This JHA clearly demonstrates that something many people would consider routine actually contains many hazards. When the recommended actions or procedures identified are fully implemented, the workplace becomes safer for all employees.

Other thoughts on Customs safety?
Rupard: There's a misnomer out there about 'safety first.' It's never first-the job is first. My catch phrase is 'mission first, safety always' because safety can be incorporated into getting the job done.

Garcia: The safety program is here to protect all employees. If safety is not taken seriously, accidents could happen. The costs to the employee and the agency are a lot higher than if safe practices are observed from the start.

Shell: We are there as a safety resource for the entire Customs workforce. If they have any concerns or questions, we want to hear about them.

Marshall Huckaby: It's doing the basics-if you drop it, pick it up; if you spill it, wipe it up; if it's a hazard, take care of it. These are your people, your co-workers; take care of them as you would your family.

Annual safety inspections, addressing discrepancies The occupational health and safety managers as a group felt that the primary purpose for annual inspections is making sure that Customs facilities and equipment are free of recognized hazards. The first part of the inspection process deals with a physical assessment of the facility-checking exits, fire extinguishers, extension cords, and floor surfaces. The second part of the process evaluates the current state of the local safety program, including the use of appropriate personal protective equipment and completion of required safety training for their tasks, such as the use of proper lifting techniques, lock-out/tag-out for electrical and hydraulic systems, and confined space entry. Inspection reports identify compliance levels as well as deficiencies. After reviewing the findings with the manager, the reports are sent to the assistant commissioner of the operational office for the facility who ensures that corrective measures are implemented. As work starts on correcting the deficiencies, the safety managers provide technical guidance, and follow up until all deficiencies are addressed.

Photo Credit: Gerald L. Nino

Safety managers, back row (l-r): Doug Rupard, Mid Atlantic CMC; Dennis Johnson, Indianapolis; Judy Masura, Northwest/Great Plains CMC; Alberto Ramos, Puerto Rico-Virgin Islands CMC; Jack Kinney, Indianapolis; Judi Healy, New York CMC; Les O'Regan, Gulf CMC; Juan Garcia, South Texas CMC; Jim Shafer, Mid America CMC; Saul Olivas, West Texas/NM CMC; Marshall Huckaby, South Atlantic CMC; Bob Hamilton, Indianapolis. Front row (l-r): Kathy Shell, Southern California CMC; Mic McKeighan, Indianapolis; Paul Todd, East Great Lakes CMC; Cornel Castro, South Pacific CMC. Absent: Frank Meyers, South Florida CMC and Alejandro Perez, Arizona CMC.