100
ONE VISION. ONE VOICE. | 2014 Sustainability Report t 10
SAFE FROM THE START
Safe from the start—the first of Verso’s
founding principles—expresses our
deliberate intent to make sure every
person who works for us returns home
uninjured each day. An injury-free
workplace takes strong leadership,
safety systems that drive continuous
improvement in safety and engaged
people who care about their own safety
and the safety of their co-workers. By
combining all three, Verso achieved our
seventh consecutive year in the top
quartile of U.S. paper mills with a 2014
Lost Workday Incident Rate (LWIR) of
0.60. Our 2014 Total Incidence Rate
(TIR) was 1.43, well below the U.S. paper
industry’s last reported average of
2.8 (2013).
Each year, we conduct comprehensive
Key Element Assessments (KEAs)
at our paper mills to track progress
against our safety metrics, review
safety compliance and evaluate the
performance of our safety management
systems. Our KEA teams consist of a
cross-section of mill technicians and
operators, safety advocates and leaders
who are charged with identifying
opportunities for safety performance
improvement in six areas: leadership
commitment and support, employee
engagement, safety policies and
procedures, training, inspection and
maintenance programs, and failure
analysis and feedback. We use the
results of our KEAs to develop specific
safety improvement goals backed by
targeted action plans.
ALL AS ONE
In addition to being a company with
passion that is trusted and respected by
all, Verso’s vision expresses our desire
to operate “All as One,” bringing the
shared experiences, strengths, talents
and perspectives of all employees into
common alignment to achieve our
business goals. We want Verso to be
a place where people enjoy coming to
work and helping our company be the
best it can be. We are committed to
fostering an inclusive work environment
and providing our team with a
healthy and safe workplace, competitive
compensation and benefits,
and opportunities to learn, grow and
contribute to Verso’s success. As
of September 30, 2015, Verso had
approximately 5,300 employees, about
48% of whom are represented by labor
unions. These include 13 collective
bargaining units, all of which are
participants in a master agreement
that went into effect on December 21,
2012. The first contract is due to expire
in December 2016.
OUR 2014 TOTAL
INCIDENCE RATE (TIR),
WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY
ONE-HALF OF THE U.S.
PAPER INDUSTRY’S LAST
REPORTED AVERAGE OF
2.8 (2013).
An injury-free workplace takes
strong leadership, safety
systems that drive continuous
improvement in safety and
engaged people who care about
their own safety and the safety
of their co-workers.
1.43
QUINNESEC MILL MAINTAINS
VPP STAR STATUS
Verso’s Quinnesec Mill was recertified
to Star status in the U.S. Occupational
Safety and Health Administration’s
(OSHA) Voluntary Protection Program
(VPP). VPP recognizes facilities for
having safety systems that exceed
OSHA standards, a strong safety
commitment and sustainable health
and safety management systems.
Less than 1% of U.S. facilities have
achieved VPP Star status.
(from left)
CORY WING, Operations Maintenance Coordinator
RACHAEL BUTLER, Mill Communications Specialist
MARK ANDERSON, Woodyard Manager/ No. 40 Paper Machine Manager
Quinnesec Mill
