News Briefs
Chief Executive Officer's Notes
  

Click Here for PCOC's 2018 Expo in South Lake Tahoe!!

Chris Reardon
PCOC Executive Vice President

I hope you are all looking forward to joining us for our PCOC Expo in June!  It’s an exciting time for us and we anticipate a terrific turnout with a packed program from June 20th – 22nd.  We have made a few changes this year like moving the auction to Thursday evening as well as moving the banquet from Saturday to Friday night.  We believe the changes will help streamline the event and allow for greater participation for both venues.  I would also like to announce that this year’s Harvey Logan Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Mr. Charles Clark of Clark Pest Control of Lodi, California.  Mr. Clark has had a long and distinguished career and we look forward to celebrating this evening with him and his family.  In addition, because we are in the process of catching up with numerous individuals who made tremendous contributions to our industry and PCOC, we will be announcing some future award winners to be celebrated at upcoming banquets.  Look forward to seeing all of you soon!

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Upcoming Events

 

PCOC's 2018 Expo & Board of Directors Meeting – June 20-22, 2018
Harrah's Lake Tahoe Hotel & Casino, South Lake Tahoe, Nevada
Please note that the room reservation information will not be released until registration is received. Our room block closes on May 29, please send in your registration ASAP so that we can release the room link for reservations. 
Click here for Attendee Registration form
Our Booths are SOLD OUT!!

Board of Directors Meeting – September 21-22, 2018
Laguna Cliffs Resort & Spa, Dana Point, California
Information to Follow

West Coast Rodent Academy – November 7-9, 2018
Irvine, CA
Registration information will be released to PCOC members FIRST in late September

Board of Directors Meeting – December 6-8, 2018
Hilton Palm Springs Resort, Palm Springs, California
Information to Follow

BASF
Douglas Products and Packaging
Legislative Update

This has been a busy legislative year and it’s not over yet. There are a few bills that we continue to watch this legislative session. The first is SB 721 (Hill), which has to do with certifying the structural integrity of decks. This was a two year bill that didn’t make it pass the deadline in January so was held at the Assembly desk after passing out of the Senate in early January. It appears that the author wants to amend to include SPCB licensee’s which would concern PCOC so we are watching the bill carefully to see what the new amendments would look like. The other bill we’re watching is AB 2138 (Chiu, Low) which would allow felons to receive a license. This would go against the purpose of the SPCB and the idea of consumer protection so we are watching both these bills and will keep you informed on the status as they proceed through the legislative process.

Darren Van Steenwyk, BCE Technical Director
Clark Pest Control 
LEED Green Associate
PCOC Legislative Committee Chair
SPCB President
darrenv@clarkpest.com
(209) 224-4629


Affiliate Corner

PCOC would like to give a HUGE thank you to our 2018 Expo Sponsors! 

 

Diamond Sponsors

 

 

 

 

Platinum Sponsors


 

 

 

Gold Sponsors

 

 

 

Silver Sponsors

 



 

Vikane® gas fumigant has been the market leader in structural fumigation since 1961. Such longevity for a product brand in the pest management industry is rare. It is a model of a working partnership between the manufacturer, distribution, branch 1 fumigators, branch 3 termite companies and state regulatory.

The evolution of Vikane continues under Douglas Products ownership in a number of ways.

We are investing in reaching out to homeowners to help them understand the structural fumigation process and benefits. We have developed a website, FumigationFacts.com, to help do that. We have invested in a video, “How to Prepare Your Home for a Fumigation with Vikane.” We have a downloadable checklist to help homeowners prepare their home. And we operate a toll-free hotline to answer homeowner questions.

We are investing in support of branch 3 termite companies. In part, that is raising awareness of the homeowner resources. We also are conducting sales training with companies.

For fumigators we are recognized for leadership in training and product stewardship. We conduct quality assurance reviews to educate crews at the jobsite to be aware of best practices and stewardship.

We work with industry to help ensure workable regulations. Our goal is to be able to protect property from drywood termite damage while also ensuring safety for applicators, the public and the environment.

Underlying the success of Vikane is the fact that a single treatment is proven to eliminate 100 percent of a drywood termite infestation because it penetrates the whole house — even wood in areas impossible to inspect or treat. Drywood termites cost California property owners an estimated $300 million in damage each year. Vikane also is important in the battle against bed bugs, and is labeled to eliminate other wood-destroying insects, cockroaches, spiders and rodents. It can be applied to an entire structure or in a container to rid these pests from furniture, electronics and other home goods without damage. Vikane is manufactured in the United States by Douglas Products to world-class quality standards.

A central fact of our ongoing success has been our involvement in PCOC. We do this in a number of ways — being active on association committees, sponsoring the annual PCOC Banner Contest, exhibiting at the annual trade show, advertising in The Voice and more. PCOC gives us a focus point for our industry partnership and involvement.

 

Heather Kern
Commercial Leader, Pest Management Division – North America
Douglas Products

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Comings & Goings

 

This year’s PCOC Banner Contest is almost over!! Get your entries submitted ASAP for a chance to win some prize money!!

 

Presents the 2018 Fumigation Banner Contest

Click here for 2018 Fumigation Banner Contest rules and other information

March 2018

RE: 2018 PCOC Fumigation Banner Contest

Dear Valued Fumigation Customer:

At Douglas Products, we are excited to work in partnership with PCOC to support the 2018 PCOC Fumigation Banner Contest. Four lucky termite companies with the most outstanding banners will be announced as winners at the PCOC Expo 2018 in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, from June 20-22, 2018.

 

Photos of banners used on actual fumigation jobs that meet contest rules will be considered contest submissions. Representatives from the advertising agency Bader Rutter & Associates, Inc. will be judging the banner contest based on contest submissions following basic requirements, readability, and professionalism. Please see the attached flyer for contest rules.

From March 1 – May 31, 2018, contest submissions may be made either by the termite company (Branch 3) or the fumigation company (Branch 1). Submit photos of the banners displayed on a fumigation job to:

PCOC
ATTN: Sarah Clements (sarah@pcoc.org)
3031 Beacon Blvd.
Sacramento, CA 95691

Four prizes will be awarded to four termite companies with the most outstanding banners, as follows:
• 1st Place: $1,250
• 2nd Place: $1,000
• 3rd Place: $500
• 4th Place: $250

Please contact your local distributor or Douglas Products representative if you have any questions. As always, thank you for your business and active participation.

Best regards,


Heather Kern
Commercial Leader

Enclosures: 2018 PCOC Banner Contest Flyer

® Trademark of Douglas Products. Vikane is a federally Restricted Use Pesticide. Always read and follow label directions. © 2018 Douglas Product.

 

PCOC Monthly Insurance/Safety Tip

 

  Approximately one out of five workers reported being bullied in the workplace in a recent survey by the Workplace Bullying Institute of Bellingham, Washington.

The survey noted that 61% of workers who reported being bullied said that the perpetrator was a “boss” or “supervisor.” 65 percent also said they had lost their jobs because of their encounters with bullies in the workplace.

What Is Bullying?

The Workplace Bullying Institute defines workplace bullying as “repeated, health-harming mistreatment of one or more persons (the targets) by one or more perpetrators. It is abusive conduct that is:

  • Threatening, humiliating, or intimidating, or
  • Work interference — sabotage — which prevents work from getting done, or
  • Verbal abuse.

Bullying Can Cause Lost Productivity and Litigation

Some productivity issues related to bullying are worker fatigue, absenteeism and other stress factors. Bullying can also lead to allegations of discrimination based on age, disability, gender, race and other protected classes.  

“It occurred to me that many of the cases that I have defended over the years regarding stress in the workplace, psychiatric injury, sexual harassment, as well as other issues, really in a way have their genesis in the bullying behavior of someone in the workplace,” said Jeffrey M. Adelson, Santa Ana, California-based general counsel and managing partner at Adelson, Testan, Brundo, Novell & Jimenez, when he attended the 2018 CLM & Business Insurance Retail, Restaurant & Hospitality Conference in Dallas.

Can Bullying Lead to Workers’ Comp Claims?

“Whether workplace bullying could result in a successful workers’ compensation claim would depend upon several factors. If the workplace bullying were deemed to be so pervasive that it constituted a fact of employment, then injuries arising from workplace bullying could be deemed to arise out of and in the course of employment, and be compensable under workers’ compensation statutes,” according to Charles Tenser, an attorney specializing in workers’ compensation cases.

 “Employees that become aggressive see it as a way of getting even for something,” said Tom Tripp, a professor of management and operations at Washington State University in Vancouver and co-author of “Getting Even: The Truth About Workplace Revenge— And How to Stop It,” in an interview with Business Insurance magazine. “They [bullied employees] feel they’ve been unjustly treated by the organization and they want to find a way to make it right.”

Here are some guidelines to prevent bullying in your workplace:

  1. Notify employees and supervisors alike that the company will not tolerate bullying.
  2. Encourage reporting of bullying or threatening behavior.
  3. Encourage management to have an “open door” policy to stay involved with day-to-day interactions.
  4. Appoint someone (ideally, someone from human resources with experience in dealing with interpersonal conflicts) to immediately investigate all reports of bullying.
  5. Take appropriate action, from soliciting apologies to reassigning positions to termination, if warranted.
  6. Educate employees on what constitutes inappropriate or harassing behavior.
  7. Ensure management takes a “top down” approach to modeling appropriate behavior.
  8. If your company has an employee assistance program, utilize the expertise of your EAP provider in investigating, intervening and providing education on bullying.
  9. Create a written no-bullying policy; include your policy in employee handbooks and post it in prominent locations throughout the workplace.
  10. Make your workplace safer by taking all complaints of bullying seriously and taking appropriate steps to remedy it.

A zero-tolerance policy toward bullying can improve workplace morale and safety. For more suggestions on reducing bullying and increasing morale or for more information or help, please contact the PCOC Insurance Program professionals of EPIC at (877) 860-7378 or, email us at ProPest@epicbrokers.com. Also check out: www.pcocinsurance.com

Paul Lindsay
Senior Vice President 

EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants

Member News

We are saddened to hear of Dale Bell's passing. Dale's family shared this information about the services that they will have for Dale:

 

A celebration of life for Dale will be held at the LDS Vintage Park Building on Friday May 18th, 2018 at 11am, 8925 Vintage Park Drive Sacramento, Ca 95829 

A viewing on Thursday 1pm-8pm at the Herberger Family Elk Grove Funeral Chapel 9101 Elk Grove Blvd, Elk Grove, Ca 95624 and flowers may be sent to this location.

District News
Did You Know???

ATTENTION ALL OPERATORS, FIELD REPS AND APPLICATORS:

Division 19, Title 16, California Code of Regulations has been amended to add Section 1960 and now requires all licensees due to expire on June 30, 2016, or after, who have never been fingerprinted, to complete the fingerprint (Livescan) process as a condition of renewal. Please click here to see the full notice and the form needed. PLEASE NOTE: LICENSING WILL BE CONSIDERED EXPIRED IF THE PROCESS IS NOT COMPLETED.

New Members
Name/Company/District
  Member Type
  Join Date
         
Mr. Luis Tercero
Excel Pest Management
San Fernando Valley District
  R   4/26/2018
Mr. Kevin Meyer
Pretty Darn Quick Pest Control
San Fernando Valley District
  R   5/3/2018
Mr. Sam Harris
Pro Master Pest Solutions
San Bernardino/Riverside District
  R   5/10/2018

 

Frequently Requested Information

*NEW* NPMA LOGIN FOR JOINT MEMBERSHIP

LOGIN: Email or Personal ID

PASSWORD: npma

Frequently Asked For Websites


Department of Fish & Game
https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/

Department of Food & Agriculture
www.cdfa.ca.gov

California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR)
www.cdpr.ca.gov

DPR on Facebook
www.facebook.com/capesticideregulation

DPR on YouTube (see "playlists" for videos pertaining to new surface water regulations)
www.youtube.com/user/californiapesticides

DPR on Twitter
twitter.com/ca_pesticides

DPR LinkedIn
www.linkedin.com/company/california-department-of-pesticide-regulation

Healthy Schools Act
http://apps.cdpr.ca.gov/schoolipm/

Structural Pest Control Board
www.pestboard.ca.gov

Find Your Legislator
www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html

NPMA's QualityPro Accrediation Application
www.npmaqualitypro.org/apply