Safety Training and Evaluation Process (STEP) applications for 2014 may still be submitted, but time is running out as ABC will cease processing applications on Dec. 15 in order to close out the year and begin the annual STEP data analysis. This analysis, completed using data submitted by STEP participants, provides ABC members who apply for STEP a benchmarking tool for their companies compared to other STEP participants of similar work type/size and the rest of the construction industry. 

ABC member companies were honored by the Construction Users Roundtable (CURT) as they accepted 11 out of the 14 Construction Industry Safety Excellence (CISE) awards at the Nov. 11 CURT National Awards gala in Houston, Texas.

To assist employers in complying with new rules and regulations, OSHA released new wallet cards to serve as resources on the jobsite addressing the OSHA reporting requirements and hazard identification training. The resources can be found on OSHA’s publication page.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Oct. 23 issued a directive for OSHA compliance personnel on how to enforce its 2010 standard for construction cranes and derricks. The directive, which covers jobsites where power-operated equipment covered by Subpart CC – Cranes and Derricks in Construction are present, provides guidance for OSHA inspectors on how to conduct site visits, interpret the rule, and decide when to issue citations.  

On Oct. 14, ABC submitted comments to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requesting it withdraw a proposed rule and supplemental notice that would require employers to electronically submit detailed injury and illness records to the agency. For the first time, OSHA plans to make this information publically available on the Internet through a new searchable database and use the data for enforcement purposes.

National Safety Excellence Award (NSEA) applications are due Oct. 31 and can be downloaded on ABC’s website. All 2014 Safety Training Evaluation Process (STEP) Diamond and Platinum recipients are eligible to apply and there is no fee to participate. New STEP Gold recipients may also apply for the NSEA by submitting the NSEA Gold application and $450 application fee. ABC members who do not have STEP status can learn more about STEP on ABC’s website. 

OSHA issued a final rule on September 26 extending the compliance deadline for employers to ensure that crane operators are certified by an OSHA-recognized accredited certification body. The deadline has been extended by three years to November 10, 2017. This extension will continue the current employer duties to ensure crane operators are competent to operate a crane safely.

According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics/Department of Labor Sept. 11 report, construction fatalities decreased slightly in 2013, and fatalities in the industry have dropped 36 percent since 2006. There were 796 workplace deaths in the private construction industry in 2013 and 806 in 2012. That translates into a 2013 fatality rate of 9.4 per 100,000 workers, down from 9.5 in 2012.

The key behind a world-class safety program is maintaining a strong culture where the people work together every day with the same uncompromising core value: that every incident is preventable. The road to forming a culture of interdependence--where a company’s employees aren’t simply expected to work safe but actively work to keep others around them safe— can be filled with many challenges both expected and unexpected  but the end result is worth it.

ABC and its allies in the construction industry once again cautioned OSHA that if the agency moves forward with its proposed rule to address silica exposure in the construction industry, contractors will be stuck with unnecessary regulations that are technologically and economically infeasible to implement.