Safety Committee Workshop Sessions

How can you prepare for something you didn’t see coming? Nobody would have thought that on one of America’s most celebrated holidays, during a cherished community parade, a mass shooting would occur. On July 4, 2022, hundreds of Park District of Highland Park employees were working on what became an unimaginable, horrific event. Many full-time, part-time and seasonal staff were working at the parade and festival that day, in addition to working at dozens of facilities throughout the community. Team members within a few feet from this senseless act witnessed the unthinkable, while others reacted to the sound of 86 rounds of bullets, responded to the chaos that ensued moments after, or managed patrons sheltering in place throughout the community. In this session, Executive Director of the Park District of Highland Park, Brian Romes, will share his personal experience from the Highland Park Mass Shooting, providing insights and strategies learned for leading through crisis. Learning Objectives: 1. Communication strategies for leading your organization during and after a crisis. 2. Recovery strategies for supporting your team members through and after a crisis. 3. Self-care strategies and resources for maintaining health and wellbeing through and after a crisis.

The Close Call/Good Catch (CC-GC) process at ComEd is a proactive, trust-based safety initiative designed to identify and address potential hazards before they result in incidents. Developed by a cross-functional Continuous Improvement Team (CIT #3), the process encourages employees to report near misses without fear of discipline, fostering a culture of transparency and accountability. Reports can be submitted via mobile app, online form, condition report system, or paper form. A dedicated Review Board—comprising craft and management personnel—ensures quality, provides feedback, and routes action items to appropriate channels. Success stories show how CC-GC submissions have led to engineering changes, improved equipment specifications, and enhanced safety protocols. The initiative is supported by executive leadership and integrated into broader safety governance, contributing to a relentless pursuit of safety excellence. The learning objectives for the Close Call Good Catch (CC-GC) process are: Identify Safety Hazards: Learn to recognize and report safety concerns before they lead to incidents. Effective Reporting: Understand the reporting process for safety issues, using clear, concise communication. Contribute to Safety Culture: Recognize the role of individual contributions in fostering a proactive safety environment. Continuous Improvement: Learn how feedback enhances the CC/GC process, promoting ongoing safety improvements. These objectives ensure participants can actively support and enhance workplace safety through the CC/GC process.

Video surveillance cameras are everywhere. What policies and procedures do park districts and recreation associations need to have in place before they start recording in parks and facilities? You will learn the best practices for utilizing video surveillance systems, the implications of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Local Records Act on video surveillance recordings, and legal duties associated with video surveillance recordings. We will provide updates on recent case law related to the use of video surveillance Learning Objectives 1: Understand the potential benefits and legal implications of using video surveillance. 2: Understand the need for policies governing the use of video surveillance in your parks and facilities. 3: Learn best practices for implementing a video surveillance system in your parks and facilities.

Let’s inspire a proactive safety culture within our organizations! Emphasize the critical role of visible management support in driving a culture of safety from the top down. Attendees will explore practical strategies to boost employee engagement in safety practices and decision-making, making safety a shared responsibility. With a focus on continuous improvement and by encouraging your teams to recognize what ongoing progress looks like in a strong safety culture, you can commit to taking concrete steps towards enhancing safety in your workplace. Learning Objectives: 1. Recognize the importance of visible management support in building a strong safety culture. 2. Identify practical ways to increase employee engagement in safety practices and decision-making. 3. Describe what continuous improvement looks like in a safety culture and commit to one improvement action.

Join us for an impactful session on Facility Preparedness, where we’ll explore practical, actionable strategies to ensure your facilities are ready to support safety and swift response during active threat situations. This event is tailored for administrators, operations managers, and safety personnel seeking to enhance their emergency preparedness without overhauling their budgets. In this session, attendees will: 1. Understand Facility Preparedness: Learn what it truly means to have a prepared facility—from physical layout adjustments to securing safe zones. Discover how even modest changes can significantly improve safety outcomes. We’ll discuss how to build confidence among staff by offering facility-specific training that empowers them to respond decisively during an active threat, especially when evacuation isn’t an option. 2. Maximize Existing Resources on a Budget: Explore how to evaluate and utilize your current systems—whether through procedural updates, effective use of existing technology, or strategic space planning. We’ll provide insights on affordable solutions to enhance communication and situational awareness, ensuring that every team member has access to critical emergency information when it matters most. 3. Engage and Train Your Staff Effectively: Learn how to create a culture of preparedness by actively engaging staff in training and conversation. We’ll share methods to make training relevant, building a proactive mindset among employees and equipping them with the knowledge to respond appropriately in a crisis. This session will leave you with practical tools, fresh perspectives, and a renewed focus on making your facilities not only safer—but smarter.

When an employee is injured or falls ill on the job, collecting the appropriate information and ensuring communication with the correct people in your organization can be challenging. The number of applicable laws can be overwhelming. Come join us for a discussion on the “trifecta” of laws that work together – or sometimes against each other – in workers’ compensation claims: (1) the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act; (2) the Americans With Disabilities Act; and (3) the Family Medical Leave Act. By the end of this sessions, participants will (a) have an overview of the three laws; (b) understand how decision-making should work under them; and (c) have practical advice to take home to their agencies about ways to best streamline communications, both internally and with their risk pools, insurers, or other interested parties.