Happy New Year to all of you!  I would normally begin the year outlining all of our challenges for the coming year but I wanted to devote this article to a long time member who recently made a significant contribution to our association.  Many of you know and have worked with Pat Clark throughout the years and PCOC wanted to sincerely thank Pat and his family for their recent contribution of $150,000 to our Scholarship Foundation. Pat has been a leader in the association for many years and devoted his life to the pest control industry.  His generous contribution is remarkable because while it recognizes his long and successful career, it also looks to the future with education investment opportunities for families in our industry. I hope you all have a chance to reach out and thank Pat for his wonderful investment in PCOC and the future of our next generation! It’s people like Pat Clark that have made our association what it is today. 

Chris Reardon
PCOC Executive Vice President
chris@pcoc.org
(916) 372-4363

Termite Academy - Virtual

Our Termite Academy will be a virtual event that will take place Februay 10-11, 2021. The schedule and registration can be found HERE

Board of Directors Meeting & Legislative Day - Virtual

Committee Meetings and BOD will be held on April 14, 2021 (schedule will be released at a later date)

Legislative Day, with guest speakers, will be held on April 15, 2021 (schedule will be released at a later date)

PCOC Expo 2021 - Virtual

Our annual expo will be a virtual event and our schedule will be released at a later date.

Do you have a favorite recipe that you would like to share with PCOC and their members?

For our next fundraising endeavor, we will be putting together a one-of-a-kind cookbook that will be available to purchase.  What a great gift for family members and clients!

Please send your recipe, with all instructions, and a picture (if you would like to include) to Karen at karen@pcoc.org or you can mail it to the PCOC office at 3031 Beacon Blvd, West Sacramento, CA 95691

We are looking for the following categories:

1.       Appetizers

2.       Side dishes

3.       Breakfast

4.       Main entrées

5.       Desserts

6.       Cocktails

7.       Cleaning tips

Please feel free to contact Karen with any questions.

If you missed it, here is the Town hall meeting with DPR about AB 1788 Implementation

Businesses Get Cited for COVID OSHA Violations

After criticism from labor unions and lawmakers that the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has not been adequately responding to COVID-19 pandemic concerns, the agency was busy in September and October citing businesses for various health and safety violations.

Between Oct. 23 and Oct. 29, OSHA issued nearly $500,000 in COVID-19 citations bringing the total amount of proposed penalties against employers for failing to protect workers from coronavirus to nearly $2.5 million.

Among the most recent firms cited are several grocery stores in California and health care employers in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York, all cited for “serious” violations.

The businesses were specifically cited for failure to implement written respiratory protection programs and properly train workers in the use of respiratory devices; for failure to report or record injuries, illnesses or fatalities; and failure to comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Act’s general duty clause.

In its recent publications and news releases, OSHA cautions all employers to be vigilant in working to meet all OSHA requirements. The following are the most recent examples of requirements that OSHA says employers have frequently failed to follow:

• Provide a medical evaluation before a worker is fit-tested or uses a respirator.
• Perform an appropriate fit test for workers using tight fitting respirators.
• Assess the workplace to determine if COVID-19 hazards are present, or likely to be present, which will require the use of a respirator and/or other personal protective equipment (PPE).
• Establish, implement, and update a written respiratory protection program with required worksite-specific procedures.
• Provide an appropriate respirator and/or other PPE to each employee when necessary to protect the health of the employees (ensuring the respirator and/or PPE used is the correct type and size).
• Train workers to safely use respirators and/or other PPE in the workplace and retrain workers about changes in the workplace that might make previous training obsolete.
• Store respirators and other PPE properly in a way to protect them from damage, contamination, and, where applicable, deformation of the face piece and exhalation valve.
• For any fatality that occurs within 30 days of a work-related incident, report the fatality to OSHA within eight hours of finding out about it.
• Keep required records of work-related fatalities, injuries, and illness. Employers are also encouraged to learn more about OSHA’s On-Site Consultation Program, which offers no-cost and confidential occupational safety and health services to small- and medium-sized businesses.
  

OSHA has compiled a set of standards used in conducting COVID-19-related inspections. Employers can learn more about those standards and relevant resources in OSHA’s in-depth analysis of Common COVID-19 Citations at https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/covid-citations-guidance.pdf.

Also, for more guidance on OSHA standards and how to operate safely during the pandemic visit https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3990.pdf. 

For more information or help, contact the insurance professionals of the PCOC Insurance Program. Call us at: 877.860.7378.

Paul Lindsay
Senior Vice President, Principal, Programs
EPIC Program Solutions
10877 White Rock Rd. Suite 300 Rancho Cordova, Ca 95670
paul.lindsay@epicbrokers.com
916.576.1545 direct  |  877.222.0000 |  916.952.1609 cell
epicbrokers.com  | ca license 0B29370

PCOC Member Value Program Superstar Spotlight

CHEMTREC  All transporters of hazardous materials are required by State and Federal regulations to have an emergency response telephone number on their shipping papers. This telephone number must be answered by a person knowledgeable about the transported materials whenever a vehicle is on the road.
CHEMTREC usually offers this service for $1000 for your main location and $285 for any additional locations. But, as a member of PCOC, you can get this service for only $125 for the 1st location and $75 for each additional location. This is protection and peace of mind for you and your customers at a discounted price! Please contact Sarah Conrad at sarah@pcoc.org if you would like to sign up. Click here for the registration form 

Did you know that PCOC Safety Committee has a website?

We do! It is a great resource for those looking for answers in regards to Cal/OSHA requirements. Take a look! http://pestmanagementsafety.com

PCOC Fundraising Committee has a new look!

Check out the new page HERE. You can check out our swag that we have for sale and to make donations to our association.

Other Committees that have webpages:

Professtional Women in Pest Management (PWIPM) - New pins for sale!!

PCOC C.A.R.E.S.

PCOC Scholarship

Am I keeping up with my competition?

You may not think your pest control company needs additional online marketing, like Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Pay-per-Click, or Display Ads; however, you will gain valuable insight by stepping into the role of a potential customer and experiencing what they see during their online searches.

Start by searching for your services online along with the names of cities you serve. Do your competitors show up before you in the search results? SEO will help you rank higher. Are your competitors bidding on the sponsored results on the top of the search results? PPC will help place you there. When you visit other sites, do you see advertisements for your competitors? Display Ad campaigns will help you compete. These are just a few online marketing tactics that will place you in front of the next “pest removal” search or “pest problem” search Google receives.

Your company’s marketing needs will vary based on the size of your operation and the area you service. Keeping your competitors in mind can be a good motivator to stay on top of your marketing strategies, so that your business is taking a piece of the online pie, too.

After the way 2020 has gone, many are looking at 2021 as a chance to bounce back and thrive. Your pest control company should be no different! Take some time now, if you haven’t already, to assess your Web Marketing presence and identify areas for improvement. Market Hardware is happy to offer Web Marketing consultations – give us a call to learn more! Contact us today if you’re interested and want more information! You can email PCOC@markethardware.com or call (888) 381-6925.

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

Answer These Questions to Guide Your Pest Control Company’s 2021 Web Marketing Strategy

As we all hunker down this winter to keep safe, it’s important to look forward and figure out your 2021 marketing strategy. Pandemic aside, more and more customers are flocking to the Web to find the pest control solutions they need. If you haven’t already, ask yourself about what you have done to show up online where it benefits your business.

Whether you’re stuck indoors or it happens to be your company’s slow season, take a look at the following questions to find areas for growth in your marketing plan.

Is my pest control company’s information up-to-date on Google?

When customers look for pest prevention, removal, or extermination service, they’ll likely turn to Google. After all, the term “Google” is synonymous with “looking something up online.” Whether they search for services and look at the maps results or type in your company name, many potential customers will end up seeing your Google My Business listing.

By 2021, you should be 100% in control of your GMB listing. This is the only way to ensure that the correct phone number, address, hours of operation, Website URL & more are all correct. Fail to do this, and you risk calls being directed somewhere else – leaving prospects confused, discouraged, or possibly in the hands of another company. During the pandemic, GMB will also periodically ask if your company is still open, if you have any pandemic safety measures in place, and if you have specific updates you’d like to share. Posting that you’re still open, that you offer contactless services, etc., can go a long way for customers. Be sure to sort out your GMB management by 2021!

Does my Website look like it’s from 2021? Or 2020?

Potential customers use everything they can find online to decide whether they can trust you. Your Website is undoubtedly a significant tiebreaker for a client determining if they should give your company a chance.

Beyond looking modern and professional, sites that have been built within the last 4 years are constructed to load faster while making it easier for search engines to figure out what the site is offering. Newer Websites are also responsive, meaning phone and tablet users will be able to navigate your site just as well as desktop users. In 2021, don’t expect a user to wait for more than a couple seconds on a slow site to load or continuously resign a desktop-size site to fit their iPhone display.