Voluntary Protection Program teams coming to Mountain Home

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Brian Stives
  • 366th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Office
MOUNTAIN HOME AIR FORCE BASE, Idaho --  Air Force leaders are advocating an enhanced safety program focusing on developing and caring for the safety of Airmen, civilians and their families.

Because of this program, a Secretary of the Air Force Engagement Team will be at Mountain Home Air Force Base for the leadership engagement phase of the Voluntary Protection Program, or VPP, April 30.

"The engagement phase will initially expose the military and civilian senior leadership to VPP, but it's a program all of us should know about and understand," said Col. John Bird, 366th Fighter Wing commander.

The VPP originates from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and focuses on incorporating the Air Force's culture of safety in the air, on the ground, at work, at home and at play.

"The Voluntary Protection Program takes occupational safety and health from a compliance-based program to a participation-based program," said Colonel Bird. "It drives partnerships between management and labor, and industry and the federal government and, much like our Air Force wingman concept, it's focused on each person looking out for his or her co-worker."

According to the National Safety Council, preventable injuries and illnesses cost the Department of Defense an estimated $10 to $21 billion annually. Because of this annual cost, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld established an accident reduction effort in June 2003, charging all services to reduce preventable mishaps by 50 percent. In 2005, he challenged the services again with a 75 percent reduction. To meet these goals, the Navy and Army, along with the Air Force, embraced VPP.

Colonel Bird said that when an Airman or Air Force civilian is injured, it affects everything from quality of life to the mission.

"VPP is really a quality-of-life issue," said the colonel. "We want all of our Gunfighters to return home in the same shape as when they arrived at work. We care about our people and want to keep them safe, healthy and productive."

Workers sidelined by preventable injuries and illnesses also cost the Air Force money, said Colonel Bird.

"In our Air Force-wide workforce, we experienced more than 2,200 injuries or illnesses last year that corresponded to 33,000 lost workdays," said Maj. Mike Weaver, 366th Fighter Wing Safety Office deputy chief. "That's comparable to having 132 full-time people on the payroll that couldn't show up for work because of preventable workplace mishaps."

VPP is a true partnership promoting open communication between commanders and Airmen, said Colonel Bird.

After the engagement phase, the team will return from May 18 to 21 for the assessment phase. During this week, the team will tour Mountain Home to look at safety practices already in place at various locations, such as medical, maintenance and civil engineering, to see what needs to be changed or added.

"After the assessment, the team will release a gap analysis to show where the base currently is with safety requirements, where the base needs to be to meet the OSHA VPP standards, and what the Gunfighters need to do to get to that point," said Colonel Bird.

While the assessment team will only spend a week looking at the safety practices of the Gunfighters, it may take two to three years for Mountain Home to work through the recommendations made in the gap analysis. When the base is prepared, it will request the federal-level OSHA to verify it has met the criteria for the VPP. If they have, the base will receive star recognition - the highest level bestowed by OSHA on a base for safety practices.

In the end, the Air Force's ultimate goal is to make VPP an on- and off-duty priority for all Airmen.

"As long as we have one non-battle related injury in the Air Force, we can improve," said Colonel Bird. "Every illness, every injury and every fatality is unacceptable in the non-battle space workplace. As leaders, I feel it's our responsibility to give our Airmen the safest possible environment in which to work, live and play. I believe VPP can help us achieve that."