In honor of the National Safety Stand Down, which is happening early this month, we at Gallagher Bassett wanted to spread awareness and help employers and professionals in construction discuss safety with their employees.
Fatalities caused by falls from elevation continue to be a leading cause of death for construction employees, accounting for 351 of the 1,008 construction fatalities recorded in 2020 (BLS data). Those deaths were preventable. The National Safety Stand-Down raises fall hazard awareness across the country to stop fall fatalities and injuries for you and your workers on the jobsite.
Prevention
Like all training, especially for fall protection, delivering the information effectively requires preparation and desire to involve workers in health and safety at the workplace. It’s imperative to stay in compliance and ensure your workers are in the know and have current, active SST cards that showcase their understanding and compliance with OSHA guidelines.
The lack of proper fall protection is the most frequently cited OSHA violation. Stand-downs provide employers and workers with the opportunity to talk about hazards, protective methods, and the company’s safety policies, goals, and expectations.
While working on roofs, leading edges, ladders or scaffolds, ensure that you and your staff are in compliance by defining the regulations and safety rules associated with fall hazards on construction sites.
Need a refresher? Sign up for our 8HR Fall Prevention course today!
Lastly, ensuring a safe jobsite in a dense urban area shouldn’t stop at you and your staff. Properly securing tools and construction materials can play a pivotal role in preventing such accidents from putting others at risk. In addition to those relatively small, but dangerous hazards, there’s also the risk of a collapse of the scaffold itself, if it hasn’t been constructed and inspected by a competent person in accordance with OSHA standards.
We plan to share and bring awareness to National Safety Stand Down this week. Stay tuned for more safety insights and tips.
