Working in the construction industry is a dangerous one. Research shows that in 2001 alone, there were approximately 481,400 non-fatal injuries involved in construction jobs. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, roughly 1,000 construction workers get injured every single year.
While construction companies are highly advised to administer safety training courses to their workers, even with proper training and experience, any worker can obtain some kind of serious injury in an accident that can have very debilitating effects on their physical, mental and emotional well being.
As a construction company, it is crucial to follow the three steps that OSHA uses to prevent dangerous falls: plan, provide and train. Read on to learn more about making sure your employees are working in a safe environment.
Protecting Your Construction Crew from Harm:
- When planning for safety training, you want to think about what kind of training you want to focus on. Seeing as though falls are the leading cause of fatal injuries in the field, it would be a very good idea to start looking at fall protection courses. Use the Internet to check the credentials of such services in your area, and be sure to compare and contrast what features and prices are available.
- In addition to providing fall arrest training, you want to make sure that fall protection equipment is readily available. Having the right kinds of ladders, scaffolds and safety equipment can make a huge difference in the level of safety provided to the workers.
- Having quality web slings are a crucial component to ensuring the safety of those working on rigging. Web slings are able to lift tremendous loads while ensuring the safety of the worker. Not only do you want your workers to have web slings in a synthetic material, but you want to regularly inspect them for any tears or burns that can cause them to become unsafe to use.
- It may sound simple, but riggers need to make sure to pre-walk their path of travel and make sure that there are no tripping hazards present. One slip or fall can cause a serious injury.
- Proper equipment inspection can help to prevent injuries in the workplace, as well as job safety inspections. These should be performed randomly in order to ensure that everything is up to par, and if not, to instruct workers on what needs to be done to ensure their safety.
Have you had any experience with safety training or inspection with construction companies? Tell us about it in the comments below!