Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Environmental, Industrial Skills
Now that certification is being required by many states, including Texas, to operate underground storage tanks (USTs) in compliance with state and federal regulations, marketers such as gas-station operators and convenience-store owners are casting about for the best way to get their certification to operate USTs.
360training.com is providing just that training to currently uncertified UST operators in Texas. Recently, the e-learning specialist introduced its UST A/B operator training course, a Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)-approved training program designed to teach the course taker how to detect and prevent UST leaks through proper operation and maintenance as recommended by state and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations.
The course is completely online, as is the final exam, which requires a 70-percent score to pass. The course covers ten topics (including release detection, initial release response and abatement, TCEQ corrective action, waste management, and soil and groundwater cleanup, and installation and technical standards for USTs) in eight lessons. The student must pass the quiz at the end of each lesson to progress to the next. Each quiz requires a passing grade of 70 percent.
The complete underground storage tank training course is available at Learn2serve.com, one of the 360training.com’s portals.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Environmental, Industrial Skills
There are over 590,000 underground storage tanks (USTs) storing petroleum or other potentially hazardous substances in the United States today. Most of these are owned by gas stations and various industries, but some are maintained by commercial properties and government entities. Each one, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is a serious environmental and health threat because it could leak its contents into the groundwater if improperly maintained. About half of the United States sources its drinking water from groundwater.
Recognizing the danger and following the lead of the EPA, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has now required UST owners and operators in the state to undergo approved underground storage tank operator training. The requirement takes effect on September 1, 2012.
360training.com, a leading U.S. e-learning hub and a supporter of public health and the environment, has partnered with Texas Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association and TAIT Environmental to introduce the first TCEQ-approved online underground storage tank training course. The training aims to teach the course taker how to minimize, if not prevent, USTs from leaking gasoline, diesel, and other toxic fuel products into the environment. It also introduces the student to all the state and federal regulations relevant to the safe operation of USTs. On completion of the course the course taker receives a UST operator training to operate and maintain USTs in the state.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Cosmetology
There’s no reason why any person with HIV—or any disability for that matter—should be denied enrollment at any school. This was the loud and clear message from the Justice Department after it announced the settlement of an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) complaint against Modern Hairstyling Institute Inc. in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
“The ADA clearly protects individuals with HIV and other disabilities from this kind of exclusion or marginalization,” stated Thomas E. Perez, assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division, in an announcement released by AIDS.gov.
The Justice Department investigation was prompted by an allegation by an HIV-positive applicant against Modern Hairstyling Institute Inc. that turned down her application because of her condition. The complainant’s enrollment would have led to her eventually getting her cosmetology license, which is a requirement to practice cosmetology in most states and in Puerto Rico.
Complying with the settlement agreement, Modern Hairstyling Institute Inc. has now offered enrollment to the complainant, has dropped its pre-enrollment requirement for an applicant’s HIV/AIDS status, and is providing training to all employees on disability discrimination. The school has also been required to pay a $5,000 civil penalty to the United States and $8,000 in damages to the complainant.
Cosmetologycampus.com, a top provider of online training for cosmetologists, provides not just a convenient, fully online cosmetology CE program but also vital information on HIV/AIDS as it relates to the practice of cosmetology.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Cosmetology
The stats on the mean cost of a haircut varies as fitfully as does hairstyle fashion in California; but taking the rough average according to the beauty industry publication American Salon, it comes down to $21 to $44 in most states (New York salons fetch over 10 times that range!). That’s a lot of dollars for not that much hair, considering the average American goes for a trim every two months.
That’s good news though for haircutters all across America, including the professionals now working on their cosmetology CE (continuing education)—from those taking Ohio cosmetology CE to those taking Wisconsin CE. But for the average American who needs a trim? No so much.
So here are two great tips straight from the haircutting professionals themselves on how to save some dollars on regular trims till you really need that haircut to die for.
Volunteer your hair to stylists-in-training. Sounds like a joke, but students have to practice on something. And what better practice is there than live heads. Many top salons regularly conduct haircut training sessions for their student stylists, with each cut offered at significantly less cost than the regular trim. The volunteer shouldn’t worry about mishaps—each session is supervised by a pro.
Volunteer your hair to beauty-school trainees. This is a good alternative in case you can’t find a good salon that does training sessions. Beauty schools, like salons, are always looking for volunteers for their students to give haircuts to. The students are of course much less experienced than their counterparts in the salons, but, hey, the haircuts are free! And they’re supervised by a pro, too!
For both haircutters fresh from beauty schools and hairstylists who still need to renew their cosmetology licenses, head over to Cosmetologycampus.com for your state-approved online cosmetology education and cosmetology CE. The programs are a cut above the rest.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Real Estate License
For those who think that hints of recovery in the last month or two are mirages, think again. For the first time in a long while, housing figures are surpassing expectations, though not by much. Construction and real estate professionals—including those who are just working to get their real estate license or those who are finishing the required real estate continuing education—can take heart.
The online edition of The Wall Street Journal reported that the National Association of Home Builders’ sentiment index gained three points this November, settling at 20, the highest it has gone in more than a year. The Commerce Department, meanwhile, announced last week that building permits and construction of single-family homes picked up in October. The Federal Reserve’s fourth-quarter loan survey also showed a rise in demand for mortgage loans.
The positive signs are not positive enough though. For instance: the latest National Association of Realtors’ existing-home sales report still showed a second consecutive monthly dip in annualized pace in October to 4.8 million units (seasonally adjusted). Construction, a good indicator of the health of the economy, is slowly building up some momentum, but is still stuck at historically low levels. Broader sales activity remains weak.
Foreclosures, meanwhile, have crawled back up the ledger following three consecutive quarters of decline, a development that will continue to hold down already depressed home prices.
Still, a positive is a positive and the industry is one or two pulses more upbeat nowadays. Online real estate schools have been gearing up for the day of the big recovery for some time now. Top real estate continuing education providers such as Agentcampus.com are understandably all set to accommodate the expected jump in demand for real estate courses leading to a Texas real estate license for one.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Real Estate License
It seems that the nearer 2012 draws, the more harbingers of a recovery come forth. No reason yet to break out the bubbly, but reason enough to expedite one’s real estate continuing education to get licensed as a real estate agent.
One such harbinger is the consumer prices falling in the last quarter. For the economy, this may look terrible at face value, but for low-wage earners this of course means more affordability. And according to Carla Hill in her article “Real Estate Outlook: Will 2012 See Improvement?” affordability will be the operant word in 2012. With low interest rates prevailing, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) expects the coming year to be one of the banner years on record for housing affordability.
It’s true that the 2.5-year-old recession continues to drag down the economy and housing market, but the newest statistics and surveys point to a sea change on the horizon next year. Meanwhile, affordability and interest rates are combining to make good deals for this year’s penny-pinching buyers.
Industry experts are moderately hopeful of home sales improving in the new year, with existing-home sales expected to rise 4 to 5 percent.
“Once home prices turn positive on a sustained basis, consumer confidence will rise and help the broader economy to improve,” said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the NAR.
Well aware of the industry’s pending need for licensed real estate agents when recovery finally arrives, top online real estate training provider Agentcampus.com provides real estate courses and real estate continuing education that are needed for a Texas real estate license for one.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
OSHA and Safety
Electrocution is a powerful deterrent against carelessness in the workplace or elsewhere. But electrical accidents still happen chiefly because the basic lessons from OSHA 10 training and OSHA 30 training are taken for granted or, worse, ignored. Just this November, the U.S. Department of Labor’s OSHA cited yet another company, Ringo Drilling I LP this time, with safety violations after one of its employees in Ozona was electrocuted while repairing an oil drilling rig.
The accident merited four serious citations: failure to provide training on the hazards of electrical equipment; failure to properly guard electrical junction boxes; failure to provide guardrails to prevent workers from falling into a hole over four feet deep near the well head; and failure to ensure proper use of stepladders. OSHA defines a serious safety violation as a violation that’s likely to result in physical harm or death which the employer knew of or should have known about.
“Exposing workers to electrocution hazards without proper safeguards and training is inexcusable,” stated Jeff Funke, OSHA’s area director in San Antonio. “This is not the first time the same employer has jeopardized the safety of its workers by failing to follow OSHA standards.”
OSHA proposed penalties totaling $130,200.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
OSHA and Safety
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is not just about violation citations and penalties, or absent OSHA 10 or OSHA 30 training. It’s also about promoting workplace safety through strategic alliances.
Recently, OSHA allied with the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC-United) to further the cause of safety in the restaurant environment. The alliance hopes to mitigate or prevent slip, trip and fall, and cut and burn hazards. It also aims to address workplace safety issues related to young workers and small businesses. The ROC-United is a national restaurant workers organization with some 7,500 members.
“Restaurants and other eating and drinking businesses employ 11.6 million people in the United States. Nearly 30 percent of these workers are under 20 years of age,” said David Michaels, assistant secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health. “Many teens’ first work experience is in the restaurant industry, so this alliance is a great opportunity to reach these and other restaurant workers and employers to raise awareness of ways to promote safer, more healthful workplaces.”
OSHA explained that the alliance plans to develop fact sheets and a safety and health booklet on cuts and burns, and slips, trips and falls. Also on the alliance’s immediate agenda are case studies on lessons learned, and programs to provide workers and employers with training on hazards and best practices in the restaurant industry.
The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 makes employers responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHAcampus.com, a top resource for online OSHA training programs, provides the coursework that employers can use to accomplish this: OSHA 10 training for entry-level workers, and OSHA 30 training for safety directors, foremen, and field supervisors.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Pharmacy Technician Training
The pharmacy technician’s main job, whether in Missouri (where a pharmacy technician is not required to have formal training to land a job in a pharmacy) or in California (where it most definitely is after going through a pharmacy technician course), is the same: To assist a licensed pharmacist in his daily duties, usually in a pharmacy.
His (or her) responsibilities usually include all or most of the following:
- Administration tasks, sometimes including taking care of insurance claims
- Interacting with doctors on prescription matters brought up by patients
- Dispensing prescriptions to patients/customers
- Encoding prescriptions
- Labeling and filling prescriptions
- Preparing IV mixtures, ointments, and creams
- Dealing with routine inquiries on the pharmacist’s behalf.
- Stock taking, medical inventory and ordering drugs
In the few states where state law does not require formal education for a pharmacy technician, the technician can get his training on the job. “We train them on how to use the computer, how to look up information, how to label the product, how to find the correct product, how to match the correct NDC code to the product,” said one pharmacy owner.
The best preparation though is via a pharmacy technician course from a pharmacy technician course provider like Meditec.com, a premier provider of many online courses, including pharmacy technician classes, medical billing and coding training, and medical office assistant training.
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Posted:
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012
Category:
Medical Transcription Training
Medical transcription training is at the very core of a rewarding medical transcription career. This has never been truer than now when the market for medical transcriptionists is wide open and the technology available to its practitioners is enabling them to be more productive and more accurate than ever before.
This year marks the beginning year of retirement for the first of the baby boomers. It also marks the start of the increase in demand for medical services for seniors, especially for in-home care, senior care, and retirement-center care—all requiring the need for medical transcription services.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) has reiterated that the high demand for medical transcriptionists not only will increase in the next few years, but more important, will also continue, sustained by the constant, seemingly insatiable need for computer-readable electronic documentation that providers, third-party payers, regulators, and consumers nowadays need. The DoL also sees the demand being fueled by the inevitable requirement to amend patients’ records, tidy up basic grammar and syntax, and spot discrepancies.
The recent introduction of speech recognition transcription (SRT), meanwhile, has caused concern among veteran transcriptionists, who fear the new technology will supplant them. The fear has proven premature, if not totally unfounded, with its only appreciable effect on the industry so far being more understandable, intelligible raw materials for the medical transcriptionists to work on.
It’s a safe bet that the future for medical transcriptionists and for those who are planning to embark on a medical transcription career will be busy, brisk, and beyond expectations.
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