ABC underscores leading safety indicators for OSHA audience

Source: Associated Builders & Contractors, Washington, D.C.

Associated Builders and Contractors Vice President of Health, Safety, Environment and Workforce Development Greg Sizemore emphasized proactive measures to prevent workplace hazards and reduce recordable incidents at a public, Occupational Safety and Health Administration-hosted meeting in the nation’s capital. The early-November gathering was part of a new OSHA initiative to develop leading indicator tools for safety and health performance in high-hazard industries, and create a repository of resources for companies, industry groups and other organizations.

Citing ABC’s 2019 Safety Performance Report, an annual assessment of STEP safety management system data, Sizemore outlined the impact on companies’ safety performance of these leading indicators: toolbox safety talks; substance abuse programs; safety program performance review; taking action on trailing indicators; employer supervisory safety meetings; use of personal protective equipment; preplanning for jobsite safety; and, safety program goal setting. The 2019 report found that implementing proactive safety practices can reduce total recordable incident rates by up to 85 percent, making the best performing companies 680 percent safer than the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) industry average. 

“While the construction industry has historically evaluated safety performance based on trailing indicators—past incidents or conditions—it is equally as important we assess and implement core leading indicators to proactively manage performance,” Sizemore contends. “By identifying hazards and eliminating or minimizing the conditions to prevent injury, companies of all sizes can dramatically improve safety performance and help us ensure all of our employees go home in the same—or better—condition than when they arrived on the jobsite.”

 

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