The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I find, is usually a time to reflect upon the things I have to be thankful for. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday; growing up in England, we did not celebrate this event. My first recollections of Thanksgiving include attending a party in London (when I was studying as a barrister), held by a bunch of Americans. Then, it was a succession of wild celebrations in New York the next two years.

Seriously, the reason why Thanksgiving is so enjoyable for me is that there is not a commercial angle attached to it...that comes the day after! So, instead of focusing on the commercialism of shopping frenzy during the days between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I prefer to keep in mind the things I can be thankful for. Therefore, in the spirit of this season, I thought I would list, in no particular order, some items that I offer for us all to keep at the back of our minds during this time of year.

Our families, business colleagues, friends and neighbors – I've found that within our PCOC family all of these categories may include the same people!

The country in which we live – Sometimes, we take our freedoms for granted. At least we wear them lightly. We live in the greatest country in the world. We are able to enjoy the freedom to speak, conduct business, travel and live ... to name but a few, that come to mind immediately.

The state in which we live – California is blessed with more things than a fantastic climate, don't you think? Even though we complain all the time about our overreaching state government, compare this to other places in the world where you wouldn't want to live because of dictatorship or oppressive regimes.

And finally, our industry and our trade association, PCOC - The pest control industry is one of the backbones of our state economy fulfilling an essential service for all Californians. I believe also that our industry is so fortunate to have such a strong trade association. When you look at other states and look at how we deploy our resources, you should be proud of your trade association.

......just some of the things to be thankful for.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

PEST ED 2011

PCOC and Univar are again presenting PEST ED in January 2011. Mark your calendars now with these dates: Jan. 11, 2011 in Montebello and Jan. 12, 2011 in Sacramento. Jeff Tucker from BASF will be the featured speaker at both locations. Registrations forms are available at http://www.pcoc.org/ PEST ED is approved for the following CE hours; Morning Session – two hours IPM & 1 hour Rules & Regulations. Afternoon breakout sessions are: Branch II – 3 hours Technical, Branch I/III – 3 hours Technical, Rules & Regulations – 3 hours. All sessions (except Branch II) are approved for Applicator Hours DPR QAL & QAC hours have been applied for, but not yet approved.

CORRECTIONS FOR PCOC 2011 DIRECTORY

Regretfully, due to a computer error the following members were omitted from the Directory. They are members in good standing.

AMENDED SPCB REGULATIONS

The following regulations were amended and took effect on Dec. 8, 2010.

Section 1974 has been amended to reflect that all warning signs must contain the trade name of the fumigant used and its active ingredient.

Section 1996.1 has been amended to reflect that all completion tags must contain the trade name of the fumigant used and its active ingredient.

TRI-DISTRICT GOLF TOURNAMENT

The Tri-District (San Gabriel Valley District, San Bernardino/Riverside District and Orange County District) Golf Tournament was a great success. $75,000 was raised and donated to PAPCO. The winners of the Helicopter Ball Drop were Adrianne Roe, Leading Edge Pest Management and Tom Meany, Orange County Pest Control. They both received $600.00.

MEMBERSHIP CONTEST

The Membership Committee has decided to hold another membership contest for 2011. Use the attached link to access the rules. $2000.00 in prize money will be awarded to three different winners. Please make sure to carefully read the contest rules. For contest rules, click here.

SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS ARE NOW AVAILABLE ON THE PCOC WEBSITE!

DEADLINE IS MARCH 1, 2011!

Click here or go to: www.pcoc.org

OSHA regulations require businesses to provide employees with a safe and healthy workplace reasonably free of occupational hazards. That includes the provision of "first aid personnel and supplies commen­surate with the hazards of the workplace." In almost all cases, just keeping a first aid kit in a corner is not enough.

"OSHA leaves it up to organizations to de­cide their level of risk, but companies that take the minimum approach leave them­selves open to liability," says Micah Bongberg, vice president of Annu­via, a first-aid consulting company. "Generally speaking, many organizations are underper­forming in this area ..."

First aid requirements differ vastly from sector to sector and from workplace to workplace. But OSHA lays out the basic guide­lines in a 2006 document called "Best Practices Guide: Fundamentals of a Workplace First-Aid Program," avail­able at www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3317first-aid.pdf.

The guide details the four primary com­ponents of a workplace first-aid program:

• Identifying and assessing risks.
• Designing a program specific to the worksite and in compliance with OSHA first-aid requirements.
• Developing written policies and teaching all workers about the program.
• Evaluating and modifying the program to keep it current, including regular assess­ment of the first-aid training course.

Identifying Risks

Employers can use the OSHA 300 log, OSHA 301 forms and their workers' com­pensation carrier's reports to identify their first aid needs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics can provide insight into the risks faced by particular sectors (www.bls.gov/iif), including the types of events and exposures that lead to injuries. Bongberg also rec­ommends reviewing employee records for aller­gies or risk factors such as diabetes. A site re­view can point out site-specific risk factors, such as stairwells, busy roadways and external factors such as flood and earthquake risks.

Program Design and Supplies

Bong­berg recommends that employers train between 5 and 20 percent of their employees to administer first aid and CPR. The American Red Cross and other organizations offer regular classes. Some even offer online training, which is more convenient. But it can also be less effective at dispelling one of the main barriers to effective training – employees' lack of confidence about their ability to help a col­league in distress.

Good training also boosts mo­rale by giving employees life-saving knowledge they can use at home or on the soccer field. Bongberg says there's a strong overlap between companies that provide good first-aid training and those ranked highly on the "best places to work" lists.

Of course, every company needs a well-stocked first-aid kit. Your kit should in­clude a variety of bandages, antiseptics, pain killers and antihistamines. But companies should go beyond the bare mini­mum if they can. This would include the pro­vision of disaster supplies and training. Many companies also purchase au­tomated external defibrillators – devices that shock the heart in the case of sudden cardiac arrest. These devices cost around $1,500 but save 75 percent of heart attack victims when used within the first five minutes of a heart attack.

Written Policies

Display your first-aid policies prominently so workers become familiar with them. These policies, often called an Injury and Illness Prevention Plan or IIPP, should be customized to your firm's premises and personnel. If you need assistance, an industrial hygienist, workers' compensation and safety expert or your workers' compen­sation carrier should be able to help you put together a program. For more information, please contact the PCOC Insurance Program department at Jenkins Insurance Services at (800) 234-6363.

TEMPORARY NPMA LOGIN FOR JOINT MEMBERSHIP

LOGIN: 313501

PASSWORD: PCOC

PCOC Web site password for 2010-2011: "termite"

Please remember, the password changes every July 1!

Department of Fish & Game
www.dfg.ca.gov

Department of Food & Agriculture
www.cdfa.ca.gov

Department of Pesticide Regulation
www.cdpr.ca.gov

Find Your Legislator
www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html

Healthy Schools Act
www.schoolipm.info

Structural Pest Control Board
www.pestboard.ca.gov

For an additional charge, you may access a 24-hour hotline providing consultation by qualified medical doctors on pesticide-related medical emergencies. This service is provided free of charge to Peacock Group insureds.