The American Society of Safety Engineers is joining with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health to support a new Fall Prevention Campaign to prevent worker injuries and fatalities in the construction industry. According to ASSE, in 2010 more than 10,000 workers were injured and 225 fatalities were reported from construction-related falls.
The national campaign to raise awareness about how to prevent falls in construction is also supported by state governments, private industries, trade associations, academia and professional and labor organizations. It focuses on providing prevention information and training materials on three major types of falls: roofs, ladders and scaffolds.
Ron Sokol, ASSE member, who also represents ASSE on the NIOSH National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) and is President and CEO of the Safety Council-Texas City, noted that more needs to be done to prevent falls.
“This effort took some time to develop as we ‘proof tested’ all of the information in this campaign with workers and employers — in English and Spanish, but it was completed on a very aggressive schedule for a campaign of this magnitude,” Sokol said. “We want to reach as many people as possible to prevent construction workers and others from falling while at work.”
OSHA’s new fall prevention web page has detailed information in English and Spanish at www.osh.gov/stopfalls along with the www.stopconstructionfalls.com web site from the Center for Construction Research and Training, which features information from industry, nonprofit and academic sources. In addition, Sokol said the fall prevention literature will be translated into seven additional languages by OSHA for broader distribution. Also, the campaign information and resources will continually be updated.
“Planning ahead, identifying risks, providing training along with the right equipment will help prevent construction worker falls,” Sokol said. “The information from the new Fall Prevention Campaign will be invaluable. We urge everyone to share it with their company, friends, co-workers, community, schools and more. We are all part of the solution to help prevent falls.”
Founded in 1911, the Des Plaines, Ill.-based ASSE is a professional safety society committed to protecting people, property and the environment. Its 35,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members manage, supervise, research and consult on safety, health, transportation and environmental issues in all industries, government, labor and education. For more information, visit www.asse.org or www.stopconstructionfalls.com.
