Celebrating Another Successful Stand-Down for Safety Week

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter.   

OSHA’s Stand-down for Safety week continues to be a tremendous success over the past eight years. 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration held its eight annual National Safety Stand-Down May 3-7. The week focuses on raising awareness among employers and workers about the hazards of falls in the construction industry. 

Accounting for 401 of the 1,061 construction fatalities recorded in 2019 (Bureau of Labor Statistics data) falls are the leading cause of death and serious injury among construction workers. These preventable deaths can be avoided with proper planning, equipment and training. Since 2012, OSHA, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, the National Occupational Research Agenda and The Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) has encouraged employers and workers to pause during their workdays for topic discussions, demonstrations and training regarding how to recognize hazards and prevent falls. 

This year, stand downs were reported in all 50 states and internationally. Participants included commercial construction companies of all sizes, residential construction contractors, sub- and independent contractors, highway construction companies, general industry employers, the U.S. Military, other government participants, unions, employer's trade associations, institutes, employee interest organizations, and safety equipment manufacturers. RoofersCoffeeShop® proudly participated with our own stand-down conversations with the team. 

Safety stand-down week took the online space by storm this year, with webinars across the country discussing fall protection, updated safety innovations and much more invaluable insight and resources. Among the resources, the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) featured free three-day OSHA National Safety Stand-Down Week Webinar Series and OSHA featured pages of resources full of videos, PDF’s, media resources and training links. The #StandDown4Safety hashtag across all social media platforms was full of safety meetings, feedback, events and programs celebrating safety and educating peers within the industry on fall prevention.   

Another successful stand-down safety week highlights the heart and care at the core of the industry and renews the community’s commitments to planning to get the job done safely, providing resources on equipment and training to prevent falls. After all, safety stand-down week reminds us that the most valuable asset of the industry is the safety and wellbeing of the community.  

To learn more about safety stand-down week visit www.osha.gov/stop-falls-stand-down. 

Stay up to date with the latest roofing industry news when you sign up for the RCS Week in Roofing e-news.