(Tom Kavicky, Safety Director) – Last February I attended a local safety and health conference in Rosemont. Many vendor booths were set up to exhibit their safety wares, some very interesting and some exceedingly boring. As I walked past one vendor's display, my attention was drawn to a somewhat small, rather unique package lying on the table. After a brief introduction period and an exchange of pleasantries, I inquired about the intention of this tiny package. The vendor called it a hard hat L.I.F.E. PAK. It was a tiny storage pouch used to hold important personal information that could be attached to the inside of a hard hat, a baseball cap or even winter headwear.
The following week I was in a meeting with President Frank Libby. I mentioned finding the L.I.F.E. PAK at the conference and explained its function. His immediate response was that this would be a great way to help provide immediate, necessary member contact information to emergency responders or job-site stewards in the event of a job-site incident. President Libby's objective was to provide this information packet to all of our members working on our job sites.
We purchased the PAKs with the new Council logo printed on the front cover. The business representatives were directed to visit each job site in their area to distribute and inform our members to the purpose of the PAK. If you have not received one of the PAKs, go to your next union meeting, and get one from your agent. It could save your life.
Included in the L.I.F.E. PAK is an instruction booklet. You will find the L.I.F.E. CARD, which asks for specific information. You can fill in as much, or as little, contact information as you feel comfortable providing. This card is in English and Spanish. You will find a Work and Family Emergency Plan card in the packet. This card asks for In Case of Emergency (I.C.E.) information. Who would you like contacted in the event of an emergency? Again, you can provide as much, or as little, information as you deem important to you and your family. There is a place for existing medical conditions, medications, blood type and physician information. Provide only the information you would like to furnish. This is your pack. Use it the way you want it used. The last piece of information you will find in your pack is an I.C.E. hard hat sticker. Place this sticker on the outside, lower left back of your hard hat. A first responder will be able to identify the sticker and look under the hard hat for important I.C.E. information.
Many of our members feel uncomfortable carrying a wallet on the job. This pack is perfect for carrying your union identification card. When the steward or business representative asks to see your card, the pack will save you a trip out to the truck. Many of our members find it convenient to stash a few bucks in the pack. I am certain that there are many other creative ideas for utilizing this tool.
I recently affixed my L.I.F.E. PAK to my hard hat. I feel more secure knowing that if I have a medical emergency or get injured while I am auditing a job site, I will receive appropriate attention from my brother and sister members, and my family will be immediately contacted. I have had many positive, heartfelt remarks from many members thanking the council for caring about their health and safety. I have spoken with hard hat manufacturers to find out if there may be a potential problem attaching the PAK to the inside of the hard hat. Their reply was that as long as the PAK is positioned to allow the suspension head gear to do its intended job in the event of a sudden force applied to the hard hat, there does not appear to be an issue.
Wear the L.I.F.E. PAK in good health. BE SAFE!
