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News Release USDL: 97-281
Tuesday, August 12, 1997
Contact: Christy Setzer, (202)219-8148

OSHA Sets First Regional Conference On Ergonomics For Sept. 17 In New York

The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) will launch the first in a series of conferences on
ways to combat repetitive stress injuries, one of the fastest-growing, most
costly threats to worker health, in Lockport, N.Y., on Sept. 17.
The session, which will run from 7:30 a.m.-5:00 p.m., will be held at the
OSHA Training Institute Education Center at Niagara County
Community College.

"Effective Practices in Ergonomics" will enable workers, unions, employers,
trade and professional associations, academics and
government to share information about effective solutions to reduce
exposures to ergonomic hazards in the workplace. The conference is
co-sponsored by OSHA and Niagara County Community College.

"Musculo-skeletal disorders stemming from ergonomic hazards represent the
single largest group of preventable job injuries and illnesses
in the United States today. It's crucial that we work together to find ways
to prevent repetitive stress injuries," said Acting Assistant
Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, Gregory R. Watchman.

Watchman will serve as the keynote speaker for the conference. Other
speakers include Ken Swan, Mayor of Lockport, N.Y., and Eric
Frumin of UNITE, the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees.

"Effective Practices" expands on the national ergonomics conference
sponsored by OSHA and the National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health, held Jan. 8-9 in Chicago. The second of ten regional
ergonomics conferences is scheduled for Oct. 30 in Chicago.

"Holding the conference in Lockport makes it convenient and economical for
those in the New York area who were unable to attend the
Chicago conference," said OSHA Regional Administrator Patricia Clark.

Paying attention to ergonomics, the science of adjusting the job to fit the
worker's needs, can prevent repetitive stress injuries (RSIs),
resulting from wear and tear on the body. These injuries can diminish a
worker's ability to perform their jobs and even simple daily
activities.

In recent years, the rapid growth of computer-based jobs involving
intensive keying has increased the incidence of RSI problems, as
have the doubling of the poultry-processing workforce and the automation of
that industry. RSI problems also occur as a result of heavy
lifting, awkward posture, repetitive motion or a combination of these
factors.

For more information or to register for the conference, contact Sharon
Zimmerman, Assistant to the Coordinator, at the Niagara County
Community College at (716) 433-1856.

James Golden
Contour Design, Inc.
http://www.contourdes.com
800-462-6678 X 11
fax:603-893-4558