NORTH AMERICA
The Textile Rental Services Association (TRSA), the leading trade association for linens, uniforms and facility services, is hosting its HR, Health and Safety Summit on 30 April at the Hyatt Regency Milwaukee. The one-day event will feature expert speakers, panel discussions and roundtable sessions on topics such as mental health, employee retention, compensation, safety culture, chemical safety and more.

The summit is designed to help laundry managers and executives improve their human resources and safety practices, comply with the latest regulations, and enhance their employee engagement and performance. Attendees also will have the opportunity to network with peers, share best practices and learn from industry leaders.

The keynote speaker for the summit is Joyce Marter, a mental health thought leader and the founder of Joyce Marter Enterprises. Marter will share insights and strategies on how to promote mental wellness in the workplace, reduce stress and burnout, and foster a positive and productive work environment.

The HR track will include Jason Keck, a partner at Fisher Phillips, who will discuss the new HR laws and how they affect the laundry industry; Katie Cosgrove, a partner at Cosgrove Partners, who will talk about people strategy, succession, retention, and development; Lori Stanger, the vice president of people and culture at Wildman Business Group,who will cover compensation trends and best practices; and Kortney Overzet, the vice president of people development & culture at Spindle, an expert in fostering a culture of sustainability and employee engagement within organisations, will lead a conversation on new trends in retention of employees.

The Health and Safety sessions will start with learning valuable insights from SafeTRSA Award winners on fostering a strong safety culture within your organisation. Stephen Jenkins, the director of safety and health at Cintas Corp., will lead a session focused on ergonomics and how to optimise workstations, equipment and processes to prevent injuries and promote employee health. Representatives from several supplier partner chemical companies will discuss the safe handling of chemicals. Additionally, Brian Varner, the owner and founder of Safety Solutions for Healthcare, will discuss the importance of safety metrics and how to effectively measure safety performance using dashboards and data-driven insights.

After the two breakout groups finish, attendees will gather for a presentation by Jacob Geyer, the chief insurance officer at CompScience, who will demonstrate how artificial intelligence solutions can help improve production ergonomics and reduce workers' compensation claims. In addition, Samlane Ketevong, the director of certification and accreditation at TRSA, and Varner, will introduce the TRSA Health & Safety Self-Audit and Certification Program, a new initiative to help laundries achieve excellence in safety performance and management.

The summit will conclude with a networking reception, combined with the TRSA & WATS Midwest Production Summit, which kicks off the next day (1 May) at the same location allowing attendees to mingle with speakers, sponsors and fellow laundry professionals.  Register for both summits at the same time and save 10% off the total cost.

 Simply enter the promo code “PRODHRSAFECOMBO” when checking out online. Early registration rates are available until March 22. To register, visit the event website at trsa.org/hr-hs