Vacation Time!

It appears that we are right in the heart of summer vacation time.  I know several people who were gone last week, several others that are gone this week and several more that will be gone next week, but I only know one person that has just returned from three weeks of vacation…our own VP Kurt Dinnes.  Welcome back Kurt!  You deserved the break since after all you’ve been pulling double duty as this year’s VP and Parade Chairman.  And yes, I am jealous!

This last week there was no vacation from OSHA.  Thursday I was notified that a job site meeting was arranged in Norman between a framer and OSHA.  This was simply a consultation meeting asked for by the framer in order to clarify some of the regulations and hopefully prevent him from future violations.  The OSHA field consultants pointed out two items that would have been violations had this been an actual inspection.  One was obvious…discarded boards with nails sticking up - remedied by pulling or bending them over.  The other was not so obvious.  While walking around the site (which was stud walls only at this stage) a red Hilti strip load was picked up with one load unspent - remedied by firing this unspent load.  Overall this was a good meeting and probably a good idea for all trades to partake in.  We all left with a lot of new handouts and sample programs (which can also be downloaded from their web site).

This week will be a mini vacation for me and several other members as we travel to Durant, OK to the Choctaw Casino for the OSHBA Summer Convention.  Vacation in the sense that we won’t be at our offices or job sites; however, we will be attending meetings and classes.

Last but not least…last week there was an article in the Tulsa World regarding the economy, employment and residential construction.  Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said, “The nation’s employment picture will improve significantly once residential construction rebounds.  An increase in construction will prompt a variety of businesses to hire more workers.”  Thank you Warren Buffett!  We’ve been saying the same thing for a while now.  Maybe something will click since it’s coming from him.

Have a great week (vacation or not)!

Jim Schuff

President