Construction

Washington – OSHA has released a long-awaited update to its standard on walking/working surfaces, issuing a final rule that addresses slips, trips and falls in the workplace and establishes employer requirements for the use of personal fall protection systems.

Washington – OSHA has released a compliance guide meant to help small businesses in the construction industry adhere to a final rule regarding exposure to crystalline silica in the workplace.

Cheyenne, WY – Thirty job-related deaths occurred in Wyoming in 2015, down nearly 12 percent from the 34 deaths recorded the previous year, according to a recent report from the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services.

Harrisburg, PA – Pennsylvania’s Department of Labor & Industry has launched a public awareness campaign intended to inform workers and employers about the dangers of being misclassified as independent contractors.

Silver Spring, MD – Less than 50 percent of the 9 million workers in the construction industry in 2015 rated their workplaces as “very safe,” according to a new report from the Center for Construction Research and Training, also known as CPWR.

Washington – New labor-law disclosure requirements for prospective federal contractors and subcontractors issued as part of President Barack Obama’s Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order 13673 are on hold after a Texas judge issued a preliminary injunction one day before the regulation was set to go into effect.

Washington – OSHA has scheduled a meeting of its Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health.

In an instant and without notice, an unsupported trench can give way and a worker can be buried alive. “Even though small amounts of dirt may not seem treacherous, a single cubic yard of dirt can weigh more than 3,000 pounds, which can fatally crush or suffocate workers,” NIOSH states.

Between 2003 and 2013, falls were the leading cause of death in the construction industry, resulting in more than 3,500 fatalities, according to OSHA. During that time, falls from roofs made up roughly 34 percent of the deaths – all of which were preventable.

Anaheim, CA – For the sixth year in a row, Fall Protection (1926.501) is the most frequently cited OSHA standard, the agency and Safety+Health magazine announced Oct. 18 at the 2016 NSC Congress & Expo.