The construction industry has been hiring in significant numbers in recent years, thanks to the ever-larger capital projects being undertaken all over the country. The industry, however, faces unique challenges (such as reducing risk on infrastructure projects) resulting from the complexity of construction projects which create greater risks for inefficiency than those faced by other sectors.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, roughly 150,000 job site injuries/fatalities occur across the nation each year. Employers have some effective and affordable methods available to them to prevent on-the-job accidents and ensure health and safety is carefully managed on a construction site. These efforts toward reducing risk on infrastructure projects include:
Providing safety training
Employers should provide training to educate employees on workplace safety standards as provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the hazards that they may face while on the job. Additionally, employees should not operate any equipment they are not qualified or trained to use.
Having frequent safety meetings
The meetings can be held at the start of each day, especially in high-risk work situations. Employees should be encouraged to stay focused while being updated on the changes that are made on the site as well as the machinery that will be used in different areas of the site.
Utilizing safety gear
Workers should wear the recommended safety equipment for the job which includes hard hats, high visibility clothing, goggles, gloves, protective suits, steel-toed shoes, among other things appropriate to the job the construction worker is scheduled to perform.
Maintaining the equipment
All equipment and machinery must be inspected regularly to ensure they are in proper working order. Employees are known to get trapped under heavy machinery that does not work properly causing serious injuries and deaths. Any damaged or unsafe equipment should be reported to the relevant authorities.
Identifying the hazards and making a plan
Falls, trips, collapses, chemicals and electrical shocks are some of the hazards that put many construction workers at risk. Risk assessments need to be on-going for each phase of work to identify and eliminate any risk. If the risk cannot be eliminated, it must be mitigated to ensure the duration and number of workers exposed to the risk are reduced, as much as possible.
With a comprehensive plan and a focused approach, most occupational hazards on construction sites can be mitigated to a great extent. If you want to get the expertise of our construction management professionals, then get in touch with Trilogy Corporation today. Trilogy provides comprehensive construction management, property assessments, and other strategies to maintain assets efficiently, invest resources wisely, and increase quality of service.
