Governor’s bill expands apprenticeship opportunities

Governor Gregoire proposed this bill to expand apprenticeship opportunities for secondary schools to help prepare students for technical careers and apprenticeships. These expanded opportunities are part of the Governor’s education priority.

The new law requires the Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council (WSATC) to lead and coordinate education outreach programs for middle and high schools, specifically focused on apprenticeship and career opportunities. It requires the WSATC to manage a program to allow high-school students a “direct entry” into building-trades apprenticeships.

Under this new law, the WSATC will:

• Assist schools in obtaining existing resources.
• Develop guidelines in conjunction with the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction and other affected agencies and interested parties.
• Award 10 incentive grants for school districts to negotiate and implement local apprenticeship agreements for accepting high-school students.
• Provide a yearly report to the Education and Commerce and Labor committees.

About 41 percent of high-school students do not go to college so, for many of these young people, apprenticeship offers another avenue to a good job. It also supplies a skilled and motivated workforce in fields where qualified workers may be scarce, such as in construction and health care.

Apprenticeship is a vital program that brings business and labor together in partnership, trains skilled workers, contributes to the economic vitality of the state and invests in young people by providing more opportunities for “the original four-year degree.” I’m pleased that this is one of the Governor’s priorities.

Sen. Patty Murray visits SSCC Duwamish Industrial Education Center

Sen. Patty Murray attended the Seattle King County Building Trades holiday event in December. While there, she toured labs and learned about the center’s apprenticeship and pre-apprentice programs.

	Sen. Patty Murray meeting with student Deirk Hansen (right), and training coordinator Kelly Humann (left), during a visit to Duwamish Industrial Education Center.

Domestic water heaters used in public places

Did you know that the Boiler Program regulates the installation and proper operation of domestic water heaters used in public places? Public places include any building or portion of a building where 50 or more people may gather for education, instruction, worship, entertainment, amusement, drinking or dining. This typically includes childcare centers, restaurants, schools, nursing and boarding homes and churches.

Periodic inspections, along with proper installation and safe operation, prevent catastrophic explosions of boilers and pressure vessels and domestic hot water heaters. In addition to the public safety concerns, there are economic benefits to having regular inspections. A professional inspection can save you money by warding off huge repair costs. Skilled inspectors use ultrasound technology to identify maintenance needs and potential problems before they escalate into major repairs. Plus, an efficiently operating unit saves money on energy costs.

If you have concerns about the safety of your water heater, boiler or pressure vessel or other questions about the inspection program, please call your local L&I office and ask for a boiler inspector, or visit the Boiler Section web site.

ASME/National Board Training held in Tukwila

Several boiler/pressure vessel inspectors from Washington and Oregon attended the ASME/National Board Team Leader Training in March. This is a nationally recognized training class that qualifies inspectors to conduct ASME and/or National Board reviews on authorized boiler/pressure vessel manufacturers and repair/alteration organizations in this state. Normally, this training is held in Columbus, Ohio, but at our request, it was held at the L&I office in Tukwila. This allowed more inspectors to attend at minimal cost to the state.

Washington State Boiler Inspectors’ Association holds annual meeting

The Washington State Boiler Inspectors Association held its 42nd annual meeting March 17. It included a full day of professional and technical training for area inspectors and also to others in the boiler/pressure vessel industry. Special guests included Don Tanner, Executive Director, and Chuck Walters, Technical Projects Administrator, both from the National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors. If you are interested in attending next year’s event, sign up for the mailing list at WSBIA20006@hotmail.com.

Collections’ process improved

Boiler Section staff Kay Piesch initiated an improvement to the collections’ process and with help from co-worker Karol Conly, implemented the revised process. As a result, the Boiler Section has seen a 35 percent increase in payments of past-due accounts. Thanks Kay and Karol!

L&I teams target fraudulent contractors, electricians

Working evenings and weekends, six new L&I employees are canvassing the state for contractors and electricians who are ignoring registration and licensing laws and gaining an unfair competitive advantage.

The three contractor-compliance inspectors will move throughout the state, but concentrate particularly along the Interstate 5 corridor between Bellingham and Vancouver. They will focus solely on the underground economy — that is, contractors who are not registered and who also may be ignoring industrial-insurance and job-safety laws.

Similarly, the three electrical-compliance officers will focus exclusively on reducing the effects of the underground economy. They will work with local inspectors and city jurisdictions to find unlicensed electrical contractors, uncertified electricians and those who fail to obtain required electrical permits. They will also make referrals to other L&I programs for violations of general-contracting, industrial-insurance and job-safety laws.

The electrical-compliance officers will be based in Tukwila, Spokane and Vancouver, but will follow leads and referrals to any part of the state.

Anyone with information about unregistered contractors or unlicensed electricians should call L&I’s fraud hotline at 1-888-811-5974.

New requirements for plumbers take effect July 1

Beginning July 1, 2006, all journeyman, residential specialty plumbers and plumber trainees will be required to obtain 16 hours of continuing education within a two-year renewal cycle. (Trainees must complete 8 hours per year.) Continuing-education credits may be selected from the following categories. All of these required courses must be taken within the renewal cycle:

• 8 hours of currently adopted plumbing code.
• 4 hours of basic electrical education.
• 4 hours of industry-related education.

These continuing-education credits must be completed in order to renew a certificate. Working with an expired license is not allowed by law, and workers and their employers may be assessed an infraction for this violation. Plumbers who have not completed the requirements by the time of their renewal will be subject to a double fee. Retesting will be required if the training is not completed within 90 days of expiration. Trainees will not receive credit for hours while the card remains in an expired status.

Contractor Training Days continue

L&I will be sponsoring at least three additional contractor training events this year. The dates are Sept. 26 in Spokane, Oct. 20 in Seattle and a date to be determined in Mount Vernon. If you are interested in attending any of these classes or obtaining additional information, please contact Shari Purves-Reiter at 360-902-4733. The web site will be updated as classes are added. A recent attendee had this to say regarding the Contractor Training Day; “Being a new business owner, these classes helped me understand more of what is required and learn some things I didn’t know. The information and handouts are invaluable. ”

“Well drillers” legislation signed into law

A new piece of legislation streamlines the licensing process for contractors and workers in the well-drilling business. It combines multiple licenses into one and allows trainees the ability to gain on-the-job experience and continuing education concurrently for both the plumbing and electrical aspects of their trade. It also expands the Plumbing Advisory Board to include two members of the well industry and allows the board to create well-drilling specialties. This change will make it easier to comply with the licensing regulations and provide for a higher level of expertise from the well industry.

Classroom education for electrical trainees

This new law improves the training provided to all electrical trainees and requires all electrical trainees to attend a minimum of 16 hours of classroom electrical education biannually in order to renew their certificate. Under the new law, training can be part of an approved apprenticeship program. The requirement is effective for all trainees renewing their training certificate beginning July 1, 2007.

Funding approved for eight new inspectors

In just the past four years, there has been a 30 percent workload increase in the Electrical Program with no increase in staffing. Our stakeholders have told us that providing timely inspections is their highest priority. The Legislature agreed and approved a budget package that included eight new electrical inspectors. We will be starting the hiring process right away.

HVAC/R Task Force to address industry concerns

Last fall, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) examined the amount and nature of regulation effecting heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) contractors. As a part of its final report, the committee asked L&I to facilitate a process to develop alternative scenarios for regulating the HVAC/R industry.

In response to this request, L&I convened a task force of HVAC/R industry participants and stakeholders to discuss concerns and how things might be changed or improved. The task force formed three subcommittees — Consumer Protection and Business, Public Safety, and Regulatory Alternatives — to look into those topics in greater detail.

Meetings are currently scheduled to continue through August, concluding with a final report by the task force for the JLARC defining and exploring scenarios for regulation of the HVAC/R industry.

If you have any questions about this, please contact Trista Zugel at 360-902-5860.

You may have heard the tragic news story about the man who died from a fall into an elevator shaft as he was attempting to climb out of a stuck elevator in a Bellevue building. L&I is investigating this accident, but the investigation is not yet complete.

In the meantime, there are a few things I’d like you to know about elevators. Statistics show that elevators are one of the safest modes of transportation. Injuries do happen, but most could be prevented with education and awareness of elevator safety. The most common injuries are from tripping or being hit by closing doors. We investigate a number of these incidents each year.

Here are some elevator safety tips to keep in mind:

• Never reach out to stop a closing door. Not all doors will reopen, and it isn’t worth the risk. Wait for the next elevator.
• Check to make sure the elevator is level with the floor. If it isn’t level, you could trip and fall. (The elevator may need an adjustment, but it is no more likely to get stuck or crash.)
• If you find yourself in a stuck elevator, stay calm. Use the emergency button or phone to call for help and advice. Never try to climb out of the elevator. It may start moving, or you could be at risk of falling. You are safe in the elevator until qualified personnel come to your assistance.
• In case of fire in the building, use the stairs, not the elevator.

Corrections

As some of you may have realized, we have been lax in issuing penalties over the past year. This occurred primarily because the system that monitors and reports the “90-day or more outstanding correction” had become unusable.

Now, with a new system is in place for monitoring corrections, we started sending penalty notices beginning Feb. 1. To date, there are 2,500 conveyances with outstanding corrections. The fines will be issued in a graduated fashion as outlined in Chapter 296‑96‑01070(f)(g) WAC:

• 90 days overdue is $100.
• 180 days overdue is $250.
• 270 days overdue is $400.
• 360 days overdue is $500.
• Each 30 days thereafter is $500.

It is not our intention to make money on penalties, but it has become evident that some will not bring conveyances up to the state minimum safety standards without this penalty. If you have outstanding corrections, please complete the repairs, sign and date the inspection report and submit the report to our office.

New legislation increases prevailing wage services

New legislation signed by the Governor this year allows the Prevailing Wage Program to retain 100 percent of program revenue, rather than transfer 30 percent to the General Fund. This change provides us with additional funding for increased customer services to construction employers and workers without raising fees. Increased services will include:

• Establishing a goal of conducting prevailing wage surveys for each trade every three years.
• Using public education and outreach to promote increased response rates to all survey recipients in every county.
• Working with business, labor and public agencies to ensure wage survey data integrity and uniformity.
• Maintain a processing time for Intent and Affidavit forms of seven working days from receipt of form.
• Promote the effective use of technology to improve services.

New prevailing wage rates released March 3

Updated prevailing wage rates are published the first business day in August and February and take effect 30 days later. The publications are necessary to adjust the rates based on rate surveys, changes to the minimum wages and changes to rates that are based on a union majority. See the Prevailing Wage Rates web site for complete information.

Prevailing wage staff providing statewide training:

Prevailing wage specialists have been developing and presenting training and education at different venues around the state, including:

• Statewide L&I staff training to ensure that prevailing wage investigative procedures are consistently applied.
• Department of General Administration’s annual conference and trade show, where 75 public agencies signed up for the presentation.
• L&I Contractor Training Day in Vancouver, Seattle and Tumwater.
• Washington Association of School Business Officials In Snoqualmie, Lacey and Moses Lake.
• Associated General Contractors (AGC).
• Municipal Research and Services Center in Seattle.

New administrative remedies legislation protects workers’ wages

When an employer doesn’t pay workers wages or violates minimum-wage laws, state law historically provided only for criminal sanctions through the prosecutor’s office in the form of a gross misdemeanor.

A new bill that passed in this year’s legislative session changes the law to authorize use of civil penalties, or “administrative remedies,” as a means of ensuring compliance, when needed. The new law:

• Establishes civil money penalties for violations of the minimum-wage and wage-payment laws and authorizes interest of 1 percent per month for outstanding wages, to be paid to the worker.
• Provides a greater protection for the lowest paid workers who are in the most need of protection and have the fewest options for pursuing their claims.
• Gives employers that comply with the law a competitive advantage over employers who try to circumvent it.

If you’d like more information as we implement the new law, please sign up for updates at the Employment Law Advisory Committee web site.

Other L&I information

At L&I's Claim & Account Center, employers, workers, doctors, RETRO groups and third-party administrators can check the status of workplace injuries, check employer accounts, and send information to L&I. The Claim & Account Center is fast, secure, easy to use, and it's free!

Events

L&I Contractor Training Days

Sept. 26, 2006
Spokane
Red Lion at the Park Hotel

Oct. 20, 2006
Seattle
Wood Construction Center

Register now at Contractor Training Day

(For more information, contact Shari Purves-Reiter, 360-902-4733 or purs235@LNI.wa.gov)

Consumer Education Events

April 21-23, 2006
Everett Home and Garden Show
Everett Events Center

April 28-30, 2006
Clark County PUD Home and Garden Idea Fair
Clark County Fairgrounds

Other Education Events
April 30 – May 2, 2006
Northwest Foodservice Show
Tacoma Dome

Proposed rule changes, public hearings

General fee increase for plumbers, elevator and factory-assembled structures

A public hearing will be held at 1 p.m. April 10, 2006, at the L&I central office in Tumwater. For a copy of the proposal, please see Rule Updates.

Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council quarterly meeting

Here are the next regular quarterly meetings, both beginning at 9 a.m.:

Thursday, April 20, at the Red Lion River Inn, Spokane

Friday, April 21, at the Red Lion Hotel at the Park, Spokane

Office of Information and Assistance: 1-800-547-8367

Contractor Registration Verification: 1-800-647-0982

Report-a-Fraud Hotline
(to report unregistered contractors): 1-888-811-5974

Employment Standards Information (minimum wage, overtime, working conditions, teen workers, prevailing wage, agricultural workers):

1-866-219-7321

Issue 10, Spring 2006

ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
Quarterly Update is an e-mail newsletter distributed four times a year by the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries' Specialty Compliance Services division. Receiving this newsletter is the best way to keep up to date on Specialty Compliance Services' activities and issues.

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