Contractors

Washington – Witnesses at a Feb. 26 House subcommittee hearing criticized last year’s Executive Order that aimed to ensure federal contracts are not awarded to companies that habitually violate labor laws.

Legislation introduced in Maryland would require prospective bidders for publicly funded construction projects to meet specified worker safety and health standards.

The National Roofing Contractors Association and roofing manufacturer GAF have teamed up to create a website intended to help roofing contractors keep their employers safe.

Sacramento, CA – Newly signed California legislation seeks to protect subcontracted workers by holding employers who use labor contractors accountable for workplace safety.

Washington – Employers bidding on large federal contracts must disclose recent violations of labor laws, according to requirements outlined in a new Executive Order.

Whitewater, WI – One-third of residential construction contractors who participated in a recent study said their firms lacked written safety programs, according to researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

The temporary workforce in the United States is growing, as is the number of stories of temp workers being injured or killed on the job. Safety+Health examines the challenges of ensuring the safety of temporary workers, and the steps stakeholder groups and OSHA are taking to address the issue.

Annapolis, MD – Maryland’s Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation has been tasked with creating a workgroup to study potential occupational safety and health prequalification requirements for the state’s public works contractors.

Washington – OSHA should consider developing separate guidance for the construction industry on best practices pertaining to temporary workers, stakeholders suggested to an advisory committee workgroup that met May 7.

Could a law intended to help protect workers actually be putting them in danger? A recent study of New York state's "Scaffold Law" suggests as much, but the law's supporters are crying foul and say the study's methodology is flawed.