RSC Equipment Rental last week announced it is making great strides in its safety work. With the goal of nobody getting hurt at work, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration incident rate decreased 33 percent in 2008 over 2007. The company also reported a 38-percent decrease in injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work.

With a goal of attaining a “0” OSHA rate, as of August 2009, RSC’s OSHA rate was 2.3, an improvement since its 5.8 rating and the start of its Delivering Safety First campaign in 2006.

RSC consistently ranks at the top in safety ratings amongst its peers, and since 2005 each employee receives more than 40 hours of dedicated safety training per year.

“We are a competitive lot at RSC, and our objective for the safety campaign was to be better than best in class,” said Erik Olsson, President and CEO. “We also want to prove to our customers that we manage to at least the same stringent safety standards they do.”

Programs initiated to meet safety goals include a mandatory on-line interactive class called “The Road to Safety,” safe driving training for all drivers operating company vehicles, and on-going communication with employees and customers.

In recognition of the best-performing teams, RSC presents its annual Presidents Award for Safety to top performing branches that have achieved zero recordable accidents during a calendar year. In 2008, 226 of the 460 locations were incident-free with no recordable accidents. Injury-free teams receive recognition and a small gift commemorating their achievement.

RSC Equipment Rental, based in Scottsdale, Ariz., is No. 2 on the RER 100.