Mobility & Stretch Program Reaches the Masses

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Upon a routine visit to Landcare Logic, President Craig Gerber proudly displayed his Mobility & Stretch poster to his insurance broker, Drew Garcia.  

The poster had been published in The Landscape Professional magazine, a publication by the National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP) whose circulation reaches over 9,500.  The poster provides instruction on how to properly stretch before performing physical work.

Drew smiled and acknowledged he was very familiar with the poster.  His face is on it!  

The Mobility & Stretch Program was developed by Drew Garcia and personal trainer, Collin Dawson from Bodies By Collin.  It was designed specifically for the landscape and construction industries. The idea was to create a stretch program that would allow workers to stretch their bodies before starting their day. 

To learn more about the Mobility & Stretch Program, contact Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc. at (619) 937-0164.

Cal/OSHA Delivers Powerful Presentation

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Drew Garcia thanks workshop participants and Carmen Cisneros from Cal/OSHA.

Business leaders from across San Diego County gathered on Thursday, January 4, 2018 for the Cal/OSHA: Enforcement vs. Consultation Branches workshop hosted by Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc. at San Diego Christian College.

Carmen Cisneros, Cal/OSHA's Consultation Services Branch Area Manager, delivered an informative presentation covering the differences between Cal/OSHA’s enforcement and consultation branches. She educated the attendees on how to take advantage of Cal/OSHA's free consultation services and provided real-world examples of her experiences in the Enforcement Branch which sparked discussions with the audience.

"Thanks for putting these on, they are valuable tool that you provide to your clients and we appreciate it," said Tyler Rogers, Heritage Landscape Services, Inc.

Mission and Purpose

Carmen began the workshop by describing her experience within Cal/OSHA's Enforcement branch before moving into the Consultation branch.  She explained the goal of Cal/OSHA is to keep people safe.  Its "mission is to promote, adopt, and maintain reasonable and enforceable standards that will ensure safe and healthful workplace for California workers."  She enjoys working within the Consultation Branch where she can help employers be proactive with their approach to safety in the workplace.

Online Resources

During the presentation, Carmen covered various pages on the Cal/OSHA website (www.dir.ca.gov/dosh) and how to navigate through the site.  She explained where to find information on how business owners can participate in advisory meetings to assist Cal/OSHA in its regulations.

Reporting

The presentation included practical information for business owners.  For example, Cal/OSHA's Enforcement Branch will respond to accidents, complaints, referrals, and imminent hazards. Carmen included definitions for terms like "catastrophe" (i.e., inpatient hospitalization of three (3) or more employees) and "serious exposure" (i.e., exposure to a hazardous substance sufficient to create a realistic possibility that death or serious physical harm in the future could result from the exposure). There was also a discussion on when and how to report an accident. When required, an employer must call to report the accident within 8 hours of knowledge of the event.  She also stressed the importance of documentation and recommended tracking the date and time the initial call was made to Cal/OSHA to report an incident.

Citations and Appeals

Carmen discussed the various categories of citations the Enforcement Branch may issue and provided maximum dollar amounts for each:

• Regulatory (up to $7,000)
• General (up to $7,000)
• Serious (up to $25,000)
• Repeat (no adjustment for good faith or history)
• Failure to Abate (maximum penalty up to $15,000)
• Willful (up to $75,000)

She also covered the Appeals Board process, including informal conferences and appeals.  The take away from this part of the presentation was that Cal/OSHA is willing to work with an employer who is genuinely taking steps to correct an issue.

Consultation Services

The main objective of the workshop was to inform employers that Cal/OSHA offers free consultation services. These are resources that are available to employers to ensure they maintain safe workplaces without the added pressure of citations or fines.  The Consultation Branch offers free:

• Onsite visits
• Offsite consultation (telephone support)
• Educational materials
• Educational outreach (workshops)
• Partnership programs

In order for the Consultation Branch to work with an employer, they must be invited and the employer must not have any current citations or penalties

The Catch.  While information is not shared with the Enforcement Branch, "serious and imminent hazards identified during a consultation are expected to be corrected in a timely manner."  So, when working with the Consultation Branch, an employer is expected to make the recommended changes within the set time frame (i.e., within 30 days, immediately); otherwise, the Enforcement Branch may become involved to prevent a serious accident.    

The Cal/OSHA website has an extensive library of educational materials that employers can utilize to ensure their workplace is safe.

Contact Cal/OSHA to schedule a free consultation.

Employee Spotlight: Rancho Mesa Welcomes Whitney Chiriboga

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Rancho Mesa Insurance Services is pleased to announce the hiring of Whitney Chiriboga who is working at the front desk and in the certificate department.

Whitney's customer service experience makes her a perfect fit for Rancho Mesa's front desk and certificate department.

Whitney was born and raised in San Diego. She grew up playing tennis and moved to Northern California to attend Sonoma State University where she graduated in 2017. She traveled for a month in Europe after graduating and besides traveling, loves spending time with friends and family and being near the beach, as much as possible.

Rancho Mesa Insurance Services sincerely welcomes Whitney Chiriboga to the RMI team!

Employee Spotlight: Rancho Mesa Welcomes Erin Thomas

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Rancho Mesa Insurance Services is pleased to announce the hiring of Erin Thomas, an Employee Benefits Account Coordinator.

With a background in employee benefits, Erin brings the knowledge needed to assist Debbie Milburn with the day to day paperwork involved with administering employee benefits. 

Erin was born and raised in San Diego. She graduated from San Diego State University in 2015. And, she currently lives in La Mesa with her husband Kyle, son Jaxon, and their dog Stella. She enjoys camping, traveling, and anything that takes her outdoors.  Her favorite destinations to visit are Big Bear,  Cabo San Lucas, and San Francisco.

Rancho Mesa Insurance Services sincerely welcomes Erin Thomas to the RMI team!

Rancho Mesa Celebrates the Holidays

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

On Friday, December 22, 2017, Rancho Mesa staff gathered to celebrate the holidays at the company's office in Santee, CA.

Employee enjoyed a homemade meal, baked goods and exchanged Secret Santa gifts. 

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IIAB San Diego Celebrates the Holidays

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

The Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of San Diego (IIAB) celebrated the holidays at its 27th Annual Celebrity Waiters Holiday Party for Charity.  The event took place at the Bahia Resort Hotel on Mission Bay in San Diego, CA on Wednesday, December 6, 2017.

Hundreds of IIAB members attended the event and donated food and toys to support the El Nido Program. 

Alyssa Burley, Yvonne Gallagher and Sierra Pedersen from Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

^{Photos courtesy of IIAB San Diego.}

Employee Spotlight: Rancho Mesa Welcomes Account Executive, Casey Craig

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Rancho Mesa Insurance Services is pleased to announce the hiring of Casey Craig, an Account Executive in the construction group.

Casey played seven years of professional baseball.  After his baseball career was over, he gave back to the baseball community by running numerous baseball camps, coaches’ clinics, and private lessons.  His enthusiasm towards helping others has translated seamlessly into the Rancho Mesa culture, which thrives on doing the right thing. 

Casey’s focus at Rancho Mesa is on construction insurance and risk profile enhancement for artisan contractors.  His background in baseball has led him to a greater understanding of how important team work is to accomplishing a common goal.

ICW Group Provides OSHA 10 Training

Author, Steve Medellin, Sr. Risk Management Consultant, ICW Group.

I would like to personally thank you and Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc for coordinating and setting up the construction OSHA 10-hour class, which was conducted at the MAAC Center, located at 1355 Third Avenue, Chula Vista, California 91911.  The class was held on October 25 & 26, 2017.  We had eight different companies and a total of 13 students, which participated in this training opportunity.  The snacks you provided every morning were delicious and very much appreciated.

This was a two-day course which covered a variety of topics such as:  Intro to OSHA, Fatal Four Hazards (Fall Protection, Caught in or between, Electrical exposures, Struck-By hazards), Material Handling/Storage/Use, and Stairways/Ladders were all taught by me.  

Two sections, Occupational Health Hazards & Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), taught by Glenn Ingraham.  One section on Heat Illness Prevention taught by Tom Jolliff.  There was a total of ten hours of instruction time on the topic of hazards on construction sites. 

Rancho Mesa Celebrates Halloween

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Happy Halloween! On Tuesday, October 31, 2017, Rancho Mesa's Alyssa Burley, Jessica Morton, Christina Haake, Lori Stone, John Parker, Brittani Kyriss, Sierra Pedersen and Kevin Howard (not pictured) dressed up to celebrate Halloween.

Left to right: Rosie the Riveter (Alyssa Burley), Hunter (Jessica Morton), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle (Christina Haake), Cowgirl (Lori Stone), Ace Ventura (John Parker), Wonder Woman (Brittani Kyriss), and Kelly Kapowski (Sierra Pedersen)

Rancho Mesa Chosen as "Dream Agency" by ICW Group

Author, Alyssa Burley, Client Services Coordinator, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

As a thank you for our partnership, ICW Group provided lunch, raffle items, gifts and a basketball competition with the Double Shot Arcade System for Rancho Mesa Employees at the agency's office in Santee, CA on Monday, October 16, 2017. 

All who participated had a wonderful time.

Thank you ICW Group!