ENID, Okla. — There are only 19 businesses in the state that operate exemplary safety and health programs, and PT Coupling is one of them, said state Labor Commissioner Leslie Osborn.
PT, a local manufacturer, has been a part of the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program since 1990 and has been recognized multiple times at the company’s other sites.
The SHARP award recognizes small business employers that have top of the line exemplary safety and health programs, through OSHA’s On-Site Consultation Program services. Worksites that receive SHARP recognition are exempt from federal OSHA programmed inspections for up to two years, said Jason Hudson, OSHA consultation director.
Osborn visited Enid on Thursday to present the certification at PT’s Distribution Center at 3001 N. 4th.
Osborn said SHARP is one of her favorite programs through the Oklahoma Department of Labor because of the free and confidential training services it provides to help Oklahoma businesses stay safe.
“This certification also gives a business lower workers’ compensation rates and lower liability insurance rates,” Osborn said. “The most important thing is that they get to go home to their families at night. Everybody deserves a safe workplace. PT, for literally decades, made sure that every one of their locations prioritizes that. That’s not that common. This is one of our success stories.”
PT President Matt Parrish said the program has been great for safety help at all of the company’s sites.
“The type of businesses we are in, there is a lot of opportunity to get hurt,” Parrish said. “We have been able to engineer safer methods to do most of our tasks. We have had a lot of good experience there, and a lot of that comes with our involvement with the state Department of Labor’s SHARP Program.”
Article & Photo by: Kat Jeanne, Enid News & Eagle 6.30.22