OSHA, seeking to drive home the message that nearly half of all construction fatalities are fall related—and are preventable—this week staged a number of “stand down” events to encourage greater awareness of the need for safety measures.
OSHA—the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration—delivered the fall-protection message during its third annual National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls, with events around the country May 4-6.
Deputy Labor Secretary Christopher Lu, left; Dean McKenzie, acting director of the OSHA directorate of construction, center; and Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health David Michaels tour the MGM casino construction site. Credit: OSHA
“Falls continue to be the construction industry’s leading cause of death; each year, hundreds of workers die and thousands more suffer catastrophic, debilitating injuries,” OSHA said. “Despite these chilling statistics, the absence of proper fall protection remains the violation cited most frequently by federal safety inspectors.”
“The men and women working in the construction industry drive our nation’s growth and prosperity. We rely on them to build our homes, our roads and our communities,” said Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. “They deserve access to the equipment, training and resources available to prevent falls and the tragedy they can inflict.”
OSHA and thousands of employers nationwide participated in 2016 Stand-Down events. The agency launched its first National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in 2014. Thousands of companies and more than 2.5 million workers took part in the Stand-Down in 2015, making it the largest occupational safety event ever hosted.
A typical Stand-Down allows companies to stop work at a designated time to discuss and demonstrate how to the best prevent falls, and to encourage workers to apply these methods consistently. OSHA’s National Safety Stand-Down web page provides free information on how to conduct an event, receive a certificate of participation after the event, and access educational and training resources, including fact sheets in both English and Spanish.
The National Safety Stand-Down is part of OSHA’s fall prevention campaign, started in 2012.
More information: OSHA Stand Down.
