Document 85xgzMX2mpOd3yZjrZVDZgD4e

TO: VCM Plant Employe** Interoffice Communication FROM: DATE: subject: R. A. Conrad August 4, 1989 VISTA Question and Answer Feedback - July 14, 1989 Employee Meetings Question and Answers As promised, the questions and answers generated during the employee communication meetings that were held on Friday, July 14, 1989 have been documented and are attached. Individual copies are available from your supervisor. These answers will provide information to employees who couldn't attend the meetings as well as address questions that weren't asked at all of the meetings. Toxicity studies Also in progress is the preparation of two (2) sets of reference books that contain approximately 25 different papers, studies and reports on epidemiological and toxicity data for VCM and EDC as well as some general studies for Louisiana. These books should be ready and available for use by Thursday, August 10. A memo will be put out when the books are ready telling where they will be located and how you can check out individual papers if you should desire. A form will also be provided where you can ask questions or seek clarification about particular statements in the reports. Additional Health Screening The subject of additional screening or testing for employees is still under study at this time. When the issue has been resolved employees will be advised of the results. Regardless, if an employee has any unusual symptoms he should, of course, always seek guidance from his family doctor. Van Test Data Early The question has recently been asked "Can an employee get his or her copy of the recent Health Examinetics Testing before the hands-on physical is scheduled?" If an employee makes a special written request to George Shirley or myself (a form will be provided), the report will be issued to an employee prior to the hands-on part of the physical when it is available. The employee will have the responsibility to return the copy for the hands-on portion of the physical. Gensral A review of VCM Plant employee health history and whether a special study of that history would be meaningful is still in the early discussion and development stages. Employees will be kept advised of developments in that area. Additional information will be forthcoming to employees either in bulletins, letters or meetings as it becomes available. We understand and appreciate your concerns over these illnesses and we are as anxious as you are to determine if there are any special causes or relationships between these cases and the work environment. We appreciate your patience and understanding while we try to resolve these issues. R. A. Conrad br<2) Distribution Dept. Heads Supervisors Bulletin Boards ypft 0000^13 * for employees of Vista Chemical Company's Lake Charles VCM Plant in response to employee questions nswers at the July 14 meetings Q. What will Vista do if another brain tumor is found? A. We will continue to comrnunicate with you re garding what we are currently doing in response to the recent employee health problems and concerns. We believe our current efforts are the right ones to ad dress the present situation. Another brain tumor in the near term would certainly add emphasis to our ef forts. However, it must be stressed that the recent brain tumors are not known to be related in terms of type or origin. Q. Have we talked to other vinyl plants? A. Dr. Jack Drumwright, Vista Medical Manager, is discussing current health events with other chemical company medical directors to determine if other chemical companies are experiencing any brain tumor incidents, how they were discovered and what was done to respond to them. Vista also belongs to the Vinyl Institute and the Chemical Manufacturers Asso ciation. Those are industry groups that sponsor stud ies of workers and promote safety and health practic es in the industry. Any pertinent information obtained will be shared with employees. Q. Will Vista study our group, the LCVCM Plant? A. We are currently attempting to review the medi cal and health records for employees and past em ployees known or suspected to have had cancer. Em ployees at the plant are providing us names and Dr. Drumwright is attempting to find their records. This may be difficult because some records are with Cono co and others may be held by private physicians. The matter of medical confidentiality and potential need for releases to obtain the information may slow the process. The plant population was included in the CMA study, which is in the literature binder available at the plant. At this time, no decision has been made re garding further studies. Q. How tong will it take to answer our ques tions? A. We cannot tell you exactly how long it will take to address and resolve all of the issues raised by the recent employee health problems. Addressing your concerns and resolving the issues is a priority item with plant management and Houston staff. We have ordered relevant scientific papers not in our files to place in an accessible location at the plant. It is antic ipated this should be completed in early August with additions made as papers are received. Dr. Drumwright is actively pursuing the issue of medical screening for brain tumors. Q. Based on the potential inaccuracies of death certificates, how can epidemiological studies be accurate? A. Many epidemiological studies are based on mor tality (death rate) from a disease. This is done for several reasons, but in general, deaths are well de fined, consistently recorded, and the records are typi cally available. In many cases, mortality studies are the only feasible type of study to do, especially for chronic diseases with long latency periods, such as cancer. However, the cause of death on death certificates is indicative of a judgment on primary cause of death and may or may not list complicating factors at the time of death, such as brain tumors. This may result in an underestimation of a particular cause, or an overestimation, such as a brain tumor that was due to a lung cancer metastasizing (spreading) to the brain. The result of any epidemiological study must be viewed with caution based on these potential prob lems, and efforts made to be as thorough and accurate as possible when reviewing records. Q. We don't care about studies with thou sands of workers. Why don't you study us? A, A study of only the VCM plant, or even the VCM plant and our PVC plants, would involve a very small population and the results would probably not be conclusive. Studies done to determine the relation ship of a disease or cause of death must have an ade quate sample size to assure that any differences, or excess, seen in death rates or disease rates, are not random occurrences, but are truly different from what the normal, or unexposed population would have. The reason for this is explained by two fundamen tal statistical concepts that define the needed sample size (population studied) and power of the study, which is the probability of detecting a real difference in disease rates. The smaller the population studied, the less chance you have of detecting truly different disease or death rates. 1 (more) 1J 'A 00 0014131 Q. What do we know about EDCfTARS expo sure effects? A. Quite a lot is known about EDC short and long term exposure effects. Detailed information is availa ble to you through your plants hazard communication program and the Material Safety Data Sheets -(MSDS). A summary follows. EDC is a central nervous system depressant and causes damage to the liver and kidneys. Short-term exposure to high concentrations of EDC is character ized by anesthetic effects as well as by headaches, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, weakness, trembling and stomach cramps. Severe exposure causes coma and death from respiratory and circulatory failure. Animal studies, mostly in mice and rats, have estab lished carcinogenic effects in rodents. EDC may be absorbed through the lungs, skin and gastrointestinal tract with resulting liver and kidney damage. Q. Can EDC and TARS be carried home on my clothes? A. Yes, under some conditions. Avoid contact with EDC by wearing protective gear and remove soiled clothing that is contaminated with ethylene dichloride (EDC). EDC is volatile at room temperatures and will evaporate rapidly. EDC does not remain in the air for very long. There is, however, a higher poten tial for significant amounts of EDC to remain in im pregnable surfaces such as shoe leather. That is why only certain types of composition shoe soles are per mitted for plant workers. EDC has a very distinct odor at low levels. Many people smell it at 3 ppm or less. It's odor is a good warning property. Contami nated clothing should be properly stored until cleaned or destroyed, which will depend on the situation. Shoes with contaminated uppers should always be de stroyed. The danger with "TARS'1 is very similar although TARS are heavier in nature and may evaporate more slowly. The potential for TARS contaminated cloth ing to cause chemical bums or slowly release vapors into a storage area is even greater than that for EDC. Contaminated clothing should be professionally cleaned or destroyed, depending on the situation. O. Can't one molecule of a carcinogen cause cancer? A. This question cannot be answered with a simple yes or no. There is much scientific debate over what level or dose of exposure to a carcinogen will result in cancer. Most toxic chemicals have a threshold level below which no effects are known to occur, or their effects are reversible. This is based on our knowl edge of how the body "handles" the chemical and the way the toxic effect occurs. However, we do not know as much about the way carcinogens cause cancer, and cannot say for sure if a threshold exists, or if one exposure can cause cancer. There is clear evidence that the potential for cancer to occur is reduced when overall exposure is reduced. Q. A film shown in 1972 said glioblastomas were a result of VCM exposure. Has this changed? A. We cannot find the film mentioned in the em ployee meeting. Before 1974, there was little, if any, information available regarding the chronic human health effects of vinyl chloride. Even in the 1974-76 period, when VCM became strictly regulated, the in formation available was mostly about the incidence of liver cancers, specifically angiosarcomas. Brain tumors, or glioblastomas, have been found in various studies of vinyl chloride exposed workers. The evidence showing the relationship between VCM and these tumors is conflicting. Q. Haven't more than 100 angiosarcomas been found in workers exposed to PVC and VCM? A. There is a worldwide angiosarcoma register kept. On this register there are currently 138 cases that have been reported. Thirty-eight of those are from the United States. Conoco Chemicals and Vista had none to report. Q. What about HCI and chlorine effects? A. Detailed information regarding the health effects of these chemicals can be found in your plant's hazard communication program. In summary, both of these chemicals are severe ir ritants to the eyes, skin, and upper respiratory tract. Irreversible tissue damage can occur as a result of short exposure to high concentrations. The strong ir ritant properties serve as a good warning and, in gen eral, prevent long-term exposures. Many people can detect the odor of chlorine and HCI at levels below 0.5 ppm. Long-term or repeated exposure to chlorine and HCI may cause corrosion of the teeth, chronic irrita tion of the skin, and chronic lung damage. Q. Are EDC releases and exposures reported to OSHA? A. No. There is no specific requirement to report EDC releases or exposures to OSHA. The VCM stan dard requires reporting "emergency exposures", under certain conditions, to OSHA but there is no such rule for EDC If five or more people are hospitalized as a result of EDC exposures during an emergency, a report to OSHA is required. Q. Why don't you document high EDC expo sures like you do VCM exposures? A. We do not document EDC exposures exceeding (more) ypft 000014132 the permissible exposure limit with a letter to the em ployee as we do for VCM. However, it is routine for the plant to investigate over-exposures and emergen cy releases for all chemicals, including EDC. EDC exposure records are maintained in the same manner as VCM exposure records. As a result of the company's investigations, infor mation is developed and kept regarding those people that had high exposure during any emergency. Q. Can different people get different can cers from the same exposure to the same chemical due to individual differences? A. Yes. Every individual has a distinct biochemical make-up. These individual biochemical differences can result in different responses to toxic chemicals or other stresses. Individual susceptibility can also vary due to such things as genetics, race, diet and age. Q. Do studies look at the total number of employees exposed or total number of em ployees at the plant? A. Each study is done differently. However, in gen eral epidemiological studies attempt to look at ex posed populations and not all employees at a plant site using that chemical. The vinyl chloride studies that are available have looked at various plant popula tions and generally attempted to include only exposed or potentially exposed workers. Q. Do the chemicals here, VCM and EDC, have a cumulative effect? A. VCM and EDC are metabolized by the body and eliminated through various routes. They are not known to accumulate in body tissues the way lead does, and exert effects as a result of remaining in the body. Q. Since Ross & Fogleman are the reason for this meeting will there be a study of their work habits? A. If we decide to do further studies of the LCVCM plant employees, this may be a part of the study. At this time that decision hasn't been made. We do know that in the early 70's, the exposures at the plant due to general work practices were higher than they are today. G. Are two brain tumors in a short-time in a small group like ours indicative of a prob lem? A. We don't believe so, especially not when they are of different types. Also, both are found in the general population and are a "common type". Q. Did Mr. Fogleman have any apparent signs/symptoms from the van exam? A. Several health problems were noted in the last exam, but were believed to be unrelated to his brain tumor. However, it is believed that his cancer was a rapidly growing one which developed since the last van exam. Q. Is Vista looking at any other tests be sides Cat Scans? A. Yes. However, there are no known direct screening methods to detect brain tumors. There are tests available that measure central nervous system dysfunction which may indirectly indicate a brain tu mor. We are evaluating the usefulness of the availa ble tests. Q. Are there brain tumors at Oklahoma City and Aberdeen? A. One has been seen at Aberdeen in the past. This tumor did not originate in the brain but spread from another site. This tumor occurred prior to 1984. Q. What about the causes of death among children of employees? Will you look at those? A. We will look at all data presented to us if appro priate releases are also provided for these family members. Q. What are the types of cancer Ross & Fo gleman had? A. According to the information available to us Ross' cancer was Glioblastoma Multiforme (astrocy toma) and Fogleman's was Adenocarcinoma (meta static). Q. Would the problem Dan Ross had show- up on the van chest X-Ray? A. No. Q. Will you get more info on Ross & Fogle man? A. We hope to, but this depends on the employees' wishes and approval. Q. Did Dan Ross' cancer spread from anoth er site? Q. Why isn't a Cat Scan part of a routine A Medical information available to us does not indi physical for us? cate any spreading. A. The Cat Scan is not a routine screening test It is a very specific diagnostic test ordered after consulta tion with the appropriate physician and based on 3 symptoms and medical findings. (more) Q. What are possible signs and symptoms of a brain tumor? A. The location of the tumor within the central ner vous system) and its biologic behavior determine the way the patient's signs and symptoms are presented. When a tumor grows slowly in a "silent" area of the brain, it may first cause a headache, nausea, vomiting, alteration in personality or changes in the level of consciousness due to increased intracranial pressure, A tumor within the speech or motor areas may cause general weakness, or dysphasia, long before other signs or symptoms are present. Q. When used as a follow-up to signs and symptoms, can Cat Scans always detect tu mors? A. CT scanning provides the ability to visualize the central nervous system and possibly the early di agnosis of tumors. The addition of IV or IT contrast material has increased the detection of hidden tumors. Tissue diagnosis of intracranial tumors is required before beginning therapy. Despite the increased sen sitivity of current imaging techniques, many diseases - including tumors - may not be detected by this meth od. Q. Does cigarette smoking cause brain tu mors? A. There is no confirmed link between cigarette smoking and primary brain tumors. However, cigar ette smoking is well known to contribute to lung can cer which can frequently spread to the brain. Also, cigarette smokers in general have a higher susceptibil ity to many diseases. Q. Why do Vista blood results use higher normals for comparison? A. Ranges used for comparison are guidelines only, and vary between laboratories due to different instru ments, methods, etc. It's important to remember that the normal ranges developed and reported by any la boratory are scientifically developed and reviewed by independent accrediting organizations. Also the nor mal ranges are based on data from different popula tions and regional differences may be seen. Q. Why do the van testing results take so long to get? A. Vista's medical department is notified immedi ately of any significant abnormalities found in the test results. Dr. Drumwright then notifies employees. The full report is generally provided to the employ ee at the time of the hands-on portion of the exam. However, if an individual wants his prior to that time, he or she can be provided with the report when it is first available from Health Examinetics. This is usu ally a 4-6 week time-frame. To: Pete Markey * I nte rof flee Communication From: Karin Knapp and Kerry Gregg, Public Affairs Dote: June 30,1992 subject: LCVCM Employee Focus Group Report VISIA EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report reflects employee feedback gathered at focus groups on June 22 and 24, 1992, at your request. Hourly employees met on June 22 and salaried employees on June 24. We asked employees to brainstorm and. prioritize their top concerns and likes about LCVCM and Vista. This report contains a summary of the top concerns of both groups and recommendations for dealing with these concerns. Hourly and salaried employees agreed that the top concerns at LCVCM are their poor relationship with management, inadequate staffing, poorly trained staff, natural teams, lack of real profit sharing, inadequate communication on policies and procedures at the plant, and dissatisfaction with insurance claims processing by IBS. They also agreed on what they like about working at LCVCM: the people and the plant's improvement in environmental performance. While they would like to see improvements in specific areas, overall they find the VCM plant a good place to work. The hourly employees in particular feel a deep sense of ownership in the plant. FOCUS GROUP RESPONSES In order of importance, the top concerns by group are: Hourly employees Poor relationship with management. They feel the plant is no longer a family and they feel alienated from management. This manifests itself primarily in areas of inconsistent policy implementation and dissatisfaction with their treatment by plant engineers and front office management. In the recent past, they feel management has been treating them like "union help" and they are offended by this attitude and the communication style that accompanies it. Natural teams and gainsharing. Employees feet that natural teams waste their time and the company's time and money. Employees feel that they are already a team by virtue of their interdependence; natural teams create unproductive, divisive competition. There is a management bias favoring natural team successes that generate significant savings; other successes are ignored. Gainsharing is perceived to be a sham and a disincentive. They believe that they will never see another bonus. Benefits. Slow and tedious claims processing by IBS is a serious problem. Employees perceive their benefits to be shrinking. In sifting 1. through all their comments, inadequate communication about benefits policies and -f ft changes is a primary reason for their dissatisfaction. Contract labor. Employees are concerned about the poor quality of work performed by contract labor. They believe that some tasks are well suited to properly trained contract labor, but some tasks now being performed by these contractors should be the responsibility of permanent VCM employees. Arbitrary decisions. From their viewpoint, employees see decisions being made that they think are arbitrary and dumb. They don't understand the need for the policies and procedures that result from these decisions because they have no input into the decision-making process. Further, they feel that they don't get any explanations after decisions are handed down. As a result, they don't respect the decisions and don't want to implement them. Also, they believe that the policy manual is adhered to only when it suits the company. The employees see this policy manual as their contract with the company and they feel that it is being violated for the benefit of management only. Salaried employees Lack of adequate staff who are properly trained. High turnover makes the plant a training ground. Jobs are becoming more technical, but there is no training to help employees get up to speed and keep up. MOCA and advanced process control were mentioned specifically. Engineers in particular want more outside technical training. They spend too much time trying to interpret and follow rules and regulations and not enough time being proactive/productive. They specifically mentioned that additional staffing is required to interpret environmental regulations. Engineers also expressed a desire and a need to train with skilled operators who know the plant. Additionally, they suggested an "operations engineer" position. This would help them learn the plant before being required to design processes to run it. Related issues: Engineers are bitter that the company does not pay dues and expenses for membership in professional organizations. They view the information and contacts that outside affiliations provide to be beneficial to the company. VMS is a sore point. Natural teams and gainsharing. Natural teams are "bogus." Any gains are not shared with employees, but paid out to management in ICPs. Want teams to focus on results and on satisfying customers. They prefer project teams that are results-oriented. Benefits. Same concerns and complaints as hourly employees. Lack of leadership and communication from Houston management. They are frustrated by what they perceive to be a lack of leadership from Houston. This includes not only seniors and manufacturing management, but also the business areas. Engineers need more information about pricing and strategies to help them understand where they fit into Vista and develop professionally. In order of importance, the top likes are: Hourly and salaried employees The hourly employees feel a deep sense of ownership of the plant. Their complaints and concerns are serious and real, but every single member of this focus group said that he would not want to work anywhere else. The people at LCVCM. They stick by each other and are genuinely concerned for one another. They are saddened that the front office has "pulled away" from the LCVCM family. For instance, they took up a collection to help out an employee who suffered a loss. Every hourly employee contributed the minimum requested donation of $5; the total contribution by the plant office was $2.27. * Improvements in environmental performance. Employees are concerned about keeping ^ their environment safe (and their exposure rates low) and are proud of the plant's improvements and their contributions to the improvements. Good pay. Working conditions. They are satisfied with their tools and equipment. The opportunity to participate in focus groups and otherwise make their opinions known. RECOMMENDATIONS Training/Professional development Send engineers to outside technical training (e.g., MOCA). Assign new-hire engineers to work in the units for an appropriate period of time. This helps them learn the plants from experienced operators and develop rapport with the operators. We believe that this will go a long way towards handling the hourly employees concern with management attitudes and will give new-hire engineers a solid practical education from the group that knows the plant best. Hire retired operators to train new engineers on a consulting basis. Pay professional association dues and expenses for engineers. They see thisas an activity that benefits the company through their increased exposure to ideas and industry contacts. Ask employees what internal training they want and need and then provide it. Specifics mentioned included DCS and advanced process control. Staffing Maintain a core group of engineers to develop an "institutional memory." The engineers cited lack of training as their primary reason for leaving, so more training opportunities would encourage more to stay. Provide another environmental staff person to help engineers interpret regulations. Gainsharing Communicate with employees about what managers are doing to influence senior management opinions about gainsharing. At least they'll know that you're doing what you can to improve the chance for a payout. Natural teams Use natural teams as a way to organize project teams; employees think project teams are valuable. Change the team focus to improving jobs and satisfying customers. Natural teams aren't going anywhere until senior management decides what to do about them, so restructure them to turn them into something employees can buy into. Give recognition to all natural team successes. interna! communications Use face-to-face as your primary communication vehicle; use paper to reinforce and amplify messages. Plant manager should try to spend an hour every day in the plant visiting informally with employees. Require front office staff to walk around and talk to employees. This could be part of team measures for appropriate staff. Currently there are members of plant management who are virtually unknown in the plant. Have roundtables with employees at breakfast or lunch (company pays). Ask them ahead gpA 000014936 -f of time if they have any subjects they want to discuss, and then be prepared to discuss them. Have some other key staff attend so employees get to know them. Get key staff to make presentations to employees on specific projects or policies. Employees specifically requested presentations by Jerry Johnson and Robert Handy. Have formal quarterly meetings to talk about the status of plant activities and projects and about important company issues. Make sure that engineers see progress reports. If possible, put them on the distribution list so you don't have to rely on department heads to route them. Post progress reports so all employees can see them. Seek employee input whenever possible when you are considering changes in policy and procedure. Turn the employee advisory panel into advocates. If possible, seek their input before making policy or procedure changes. Get their suggestions on how best to present changes to employees. Share important information with them so they'll have a better understanding of how and why decisions that affect them are made. If they understand the process, they may be more amenable to change. Tell employees whenever any action you take is a result of the focus groups. Assess employee attitudes on a regular, ongoing basis. We believe that focus groups would be helpful on an every-other-year basis. ^ Policy Explain policy changes in meetings so employees can ask questions. From the employee viewpoint, most policy changes seem arbitrary, if not downright stupid and unnecessary. As an example of a seemingly arbitrary policy change that was not communicated, there were many complaints about the security guard because he just appeared one day and no one explained to employees why he is there or the procedures at the gate. Explain about the security guard. The employees feel that the guard is there to keep them from stealing, not to protect them or the plant. The fact that the guard is there only during daytime enforces this attitude. The employees also suggested that there be a 24-hour-a-day guard at the gate. Settle the issue of the 12-hour shift. Employees see this as a classic example of management foot-dragging. Look into problems with the shift supervisor position. Employees complained that this job is no longer desirable because the supervisor has no decision-making authority. If this is true, explain to employees why this position is structured the way it is. IBS/Benefits Schedule Employee Relations representatives visit the plant on a regular basis to answer questions and address employee problems. If possible have one of the ER people from LCCP spend one day a week at LCVCM, and make the employees aware that they have someone at the plant they can go to for help. Hold a meeting with Employee Relations representatives so they can listen to employee feedback on problems and also to explain new policies and benefits when they're announced. Ask employees to submit questions ahead of time so ER will be fully prepared to deal with current concerns. Relationship with Houston management Work to get senior management to visit the plant more often. When Debs Gamblin, Tom Huffman and others from Houston come to the plant to visit you, get them to talk to employees. They can speak informally or have a prepared presentation on a subject that you specify, based on employee feedback. Ask business area staff to address engineers on pricing, strategic planning and other issues that affect the plant. Safety, health and environment * - Recognize the plant's success at improving environmental performance. Employees are very proud of their contributions to this improvement. * Repeat explanation of why we no longer use the ambulance at LCCP (LCCP does not use it either). Employees feel that their safety is being compromised by having to wait for an ambulance from Lake Charles. * Be prepared for the outcome of the Danny Ross suit. Meet with employees as soon as possi ble after the case is resolved to get ahead of the gossip curve. * Reassure employees that safety is for the sake of employees as well as to protect the compa ny's liability. Employees complained that the safety focus is on complying with regulations, not with keeping them safe. This is probably true of necessity -- but explain how regulatory compli ance relates to personal safety. * Ask an expert to explain to employees the risks of EDC exposure. We suggest this expert be a physician who is not associated with Vista or a professor because third parties tend to be more credible. Consider inviting spouses to hear the presentation to allay any fears they might have. * Investigate the location of the CAER radio. Employees are concerned that it is left unattended about 50% of the time due to its location. They suggested that it be placed in the board room. CONCLUSIONS Overall, employees are proud to work at LCVCM and are satisfied with plant conditions. We believe that an ongoing effort to assess and address employee concerns will help maintain this level of em ployee satisfaction. It will also help improve the relationship between employees and management, which may prevent employees from seriously considering voting in the union. After you have reviewed this report, you might want to share it with manufacturing management or the plant managers. We would be happy to work with you to prepare a presentation, or to give the presentation ourselves. Thank you for the opportunity to conduct the LCVCM focus groups. Please let us know if we can help you implement any of the recommendations. Karin Knapp Kerry Gregg Pete Markey Paul Kober A* Interoffice Communication From: Karin Knapp and Kerry Gregg, Public Affairs Date: June 3,1992 subject:: LCVCM Focus Group Plan OPPORTUNITY Pete Markey has just become manager of the LCVCM Plant. Focus groups were last held at the plant in April 1991. Holding focus groups with LCVCM employees will help Markey in three ways: Assess current employee attitudes towards plant operations and Vista in general. Develop plans and programs as needed to address areas of employee concern. Gauge how employees are feeling about the Danny Ross issue and an ticipate any communications that might be necessary. IMPLEMENTATION Responsibilities for planning, conducting and providing follow-up to focus groups are as follows: i Function Set up two groups ^Prepare memo to participants Make dinner arrangements Send memo to participants Prepare opening remarks for PM Opening remarks at focus groups Facilitate focus groups Prepare follow-up report Approve/send follow-up report Recommendations for employee communications programs to address concerns/issues raised by focus groups Responsibility PK KK/KLG PK PK KK/KLG PM KK/KLG KK/KLG PM Deadline 6/12 / 6/12^ 6/15 6/16 6/17 Wk of 6/22 Wk of 6/22 Wk of 6/29 Wk of 7/6 KK/KLG 7/17 UFA 000014951 To: Pete Markey y Inleroffle Communication From: Kerry Gregg, Public Affairs Houston Date: April 7, 1992 Subject: VCM Plant Employee Focus Group Results VISTA Hi Pete: Here is the final summary of the employee focus groups that were held at VCM in the Spring of 1991. Also, I have attached a transcription of the comments that were recorded during the focus group meetings. I think you will find this interesting reading. I recommend that you plan on repeating this exercise as soon as possible to find what changes have occured in employee attitudes during the last year. Armed with that information you will be better able to plan what actions are necessary, and what messages need to be developed, for employee communications at VCM. f Please give me a call after you have had a chance to cogitate on this information. Karin Knapp and I would be happy to provide any assistance you need to move this forward. cc: Karin Knapp Mike Reynolds VPA 000014V52