We have just concluded our December Board of Directors meeting. The meeting was held December 6-7 in San Francisco. It was one of the most productive meetings that I have attended: it truly felt like everybody was pulling together to accomplish the work of our association. Several people came up to me after the meeting and mentioned that this was the best meeting ever!

One thing that, in particular, struck me was the work that is being done by our standing committees. This activity was then reported on at the Board meeting itself, allowing for a very efficient and industrious time together. Our committee chairs are to be commended for their ability to get the job done! As PCOC President Travis Swope wrote to them afterwards: "ALL of you have demonstrated leadership, excellent communication skills and an all out commitment to a team effort!"

The pest control industry faced many challenges in 2013 and, as we look toward a New Year, it will face many similar challenges in 2014...and maybe some new ones. Whether these encounters are in the form of threats from legislative bodies in Washington, D.C. or in Sacramento, DPR or the Structural Pest Control Board, or whether it is important association work that needs to be accomplished – increasing our membership, revising our Bylaws, reexamining our dues structure, improving our website – the key to accomplishing our goals is for PCOC to have strong leadership at every level and a structure that promotes vision, activity and growth.

Seeing PCOC members in action at our December Board meeting was very inspirational in this regard. When you realize that we are basically an association of volunteers, with a small staff, it is truly impressive to see how much work gets done. As long as PCOC has members who care and are as committed, as demonstrated by our Board of Directors, the pest control industry is well protected in this great state.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Productive New Year!

The 2013-2014 Legislative Session of the California Legislature is in progress. Click here for PCOC's Legislative Agenda.

 

Employment Screening Professionals – What You Don't Know CAN Hurt You...

In our current economy, employers may find themselves receiving an abundance of resumes. Some resumes might look impressive at first glance, but studies have shown that as many as 50 percent  of all applicants' list false information or omit information. This makes it even more critical that hiring managers and organizations thoroughly screen potential employees to protect their company, their employees and those that they serve.

Not only does completing thorough background checks save companies time and money in recruiting, hiring and training; it also protects organizations from theft, fraud, violence, bad publicity, and negligence hiring liability – which is very much in the forefront of the news today.

So, what is negligent hiring liability?

Negligent hiring is "the failure of the employer to investigate a job applicant's work experience, character, criminal history and other relevant data prior to the hiring of an employee."

Negligent hiring liability holds employers responsible for both what they DO know andwhat they should have knownabout their employees.

Did you know?.....

-Courts have REPEATEDLY affirmed that employers have a duty to exercise REASONABLE CARE in hiring individuals who, because of the nature of employment, may pose a threat to the public.

-Your organization CAN and WILL be held liable for criminal or violent acts of its employees.

-Juries in such cases will assume that if you COULD have known you were hiring someone dangerous or unfit for a job, you should have known.

The costs are just too great to put your organization at risk by hiring employees without performing and documenting proper due diligence in your hiring decisions

Other Statistics that May Surprise You....

-Substance abusers are up to 13% less productive than non-abusers and change jobs at least 3 times a year.

-75% of employees steal from their employer at least once and 30% of businesses fail due to theft – and - $50 billion is stolen annually from U.S. businesses by employees.

-1.5 million workers are assaulted in the workplace every year and 1.75 million days of work are lost each year by victims of workplace violence. And more than 13% of workers compensation claims are fraudulent. These claims raise your premiums which can lead to downsizing workforce and a weaker business.

Additionally, false information on resumes ranges from fake salary claims and adjusted working dates to hide employment gaps, to even more serious issues such as omitting criminal history.

So, almost everyone would agree that a comprehensive background check is critical. But how do you really know if you're really receiving a quality background screen?.....

All background screening companies are basically the same, right?

NO – Not even close.

In background screening, success hinges on three things... quality of data, customer service and compliance expertise. Most people assume all companies pull from the same databases, but this is completely untrue – especially when it comes to criminal records. Each background screening firm makes their own decision on how much or how little data to use, which is frightening to those of us receiving it.

A truly great company will perform Nationwide Criminal searches, including sex offender registries & office of foreign asset control terrorism watch lists, while also performing Social Security Traces and manual County Criminal record searches. Manual County Criminal searches are available in all 3,347 counties in the United States and are particularly important because they contain the most up to date records available AND are the only way you can see pending charges. Background checks can also include many other things like driving records, credit checks, and much more, but a good company will only recommend what you need and take the time to explain why you need it.

A background screening company must also stay compliant with all Federal and State employment laws including the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). But did you know that not all criminal background checks being offered by background screening firms are FCRA compliant? According to the FTC, background checks that rely only on databases compiled from "stored data" in public criminal records are not compliant and should not be used for hiring purposes. Trying to handle background screening yourself online or using a firm who doesn't know what they're doing can leave you in non-compliance and liable to the Federal Trade Commission. It is best to leave it to the experts.

PCOC is currently in talks with one of the best employment screening companies in the world, Reference Services, Inc. They are one of only 42 companies in the country to be nationally accredited by the National Association of Professional Background Screeners and they are currently performing screening for NPMA's Quality Pro certification program and are the preferred vendor of the NPMA for general members as well. Reference Services, Inc. (RSI) believes that all of their clients deserve to know it all and expertly uncover criminal records and other key information that other firms miss. Their Nationwide Criminal Search alone is made up from over 490 million records from more than 1,000 sources. They also take great care to ensure that their records are accurate, following diligent order review and compliance procedures on every background check that is performed. With the many issues hiring managers have to deal with, worrying about the quality and compliancy of a background check shouldn't be one of them. We will have more information when negotiations are finished.

---

 

OSHA HARZARD COMMUNICATION STANDARD

U.S. Hazard Communication Standard Training on OSHA Label and SDS Updates

NPMA Online Training Now Available!

In 2012, the U.S. Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) was revised to align with the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). Specific changes to the HCS to align U.S. chemical hazard communication with the world standards include:

• New Label requirements for (non-pesticide) chemical labels
• A change from Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) to Safety Data Sheet (SDS)
• A new, 16-section standard format for Safety Data Sheets (SDS)

OSHA has set a training deadline for being familiar with these new components by December 1, 2013. To ensure completing this requirement is easy for you and your staff, log-on to the NPMA Online Learning Center and take the HCS Training Course. This interactive module will provide learners with the updated information about Revised Hazard Communication Standard training required by OSHA to be completed by the December deadline. The course will take approximately 30 minutes to complete, plus additional time to finish the quiz. In the course you will learn about:

• Why the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) was updated
• What changed because of the update, including the global harmonization of chemical labels and Safety Data Sheets
• How changes to chemical labels and SDS will impact pest management professionals

PEST ED 2014

Before you know it, June will arrive, and licensees will be scrambling to get the rest of their continuing education hours. Frantic technicians will bombard their employers about getting hours to renew their licenses. Why wait until June?

Pest Ed is here.

PCOC's annual Pest Ed is Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2014 in Montebello for Southern California and Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014 in Sacramento for Northern California. We have also moved the Sacramento event to a new and better location. There will be one morning session and three afternoon breakout sessions covering rules and regulations, Branch 2, and Branch 1 & 3. We have also applied for DPR hours.

We will have exciting talks about the current plight of bees, stored food pests, burrowing rodents, respirator programs, preparing new hires and more. Don't miss this great opportunity. We will soon be posting on our website, under Upcoming Events, a link to the brochure. We also plan to mail out copies.

Click here for the registration form.

Welcome to a new section of Newsbriefs! Here, we will give news from our members: new hires, retirements, etc. If you have some news you would like to share, please send a short sentence or two to jenai@pcoc.org.

Symptoms of frostbite include:

December 11, 2013

On behalf of San Diego P.C.O.C., we would like to thank all who contributed to the Polinsky Center for abused and molested children.

As you may be aware, this is our 9^th year collecting toys, clothing, gift cards, etc. for the Polinsky Center. What makes this year unique from the previous 8 years is our present economic situation that affects our businesses and personal lives.

We asked you to dig deep and give to these children, many who arrived at the Center with only the clothes on their backs. Their ages range from newborns to 18 year olds.

We delivered all the donated items yesterday. They were given to the Polinsky Center and the Child Abuse Prevention Foundation, which work directly with the Center and with other agencies that deal with abused children.

The amount of donated items was overwhelming. Not only were we amazed at the large number of items, so was the Center and C.A.P.F. staff.

Once again, thank all of you who donated and we would like to extend special appreciation to the following who donated above and beyond:

Jim Frederick of Goeltz & Frederick

Bill Tanksley of Pinpoint Pest Control

Michael Folkins of XT-2000

Once again, thank you so very much for your unselfish generosity. We can promise you that you have made a difference to many children and put smiles on many faces.

Youhave made a difference in the lives of many children.

With all our sincere thanks,

San DiegoDistrict

NPMA LOGIN FOR JOINT MEMBERSHIP

LOGIN: 313501

PASSWORD: PCOC

PCOC website password for 2013-2014 effective July 1, 2013: "beacon"

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.