Welcome to the Building Trades Employers’ Association of New York's (BTEA New York) monthly Safety Brief, your virtual briefcase of important safety news and updates. This digital publication contains highlights from the BTEA New York's Construction Safety Committee's November 15th meeting with representatives from the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). | | |
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Important Reminder
Starting in January 2024, an individual may not be designated as the primary construction superintendent for more than three jobs, down from five. Starting in November 2024, major building status drops to seven stories. Effective immediately, all scaffold filings must be done through the DOB Now website.
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November 2023 Incident Report
- In October, DOB responded to 731 complaints and issued seven Local Law 196 violations. Construction Safety Compliance and Construction Safety Enforcement performed 2,823 job site inspections, issuing 965 violations and 215 Stop Work Orders (SWOs).
- DOB received 247 SWO reinspection requests. Turnaround time for reinspection averaged a day and a half.
- In October, there were 54 incidents resulting in 56 injuries, no fatalities.
- Falls were the leading cause of injury (56 percent). Most of the remaining incidents were non-construction-related medical emergencies (stroke, dehydration, etc.). There was a two percent rise in injuries dealing with equipment.
- For 25 percent of injury responses, DOB found the cause to be worker error.
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Site Safety Training (SST) Question. Do workers who have completed OSHA 30 training to get SST cards have to redo the OSHA training every five years?
SST Answer. No, as long as the worker takes the required refresher course before the card expires. Once the card expires, workers who have not completed the refresher course will have to retake all training requirements, including OSHA. There is no grace period. More information can be found here.
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Occupational Safety and
Health Administration
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In preparation for the winter months. OSHA is reminding workers and supervisors about the importance of warm and multilayer clothing, proper hydration, and staying dry on outdoor worksites to prevent exposure, frostbite, hypothermia, and other hazards. OSHA also shared information on winter preparedness and the signs and symptoms of cold stress.
Regulatory changes to aid the prevention of outdoor and indoor heat illness on construction sites are open to comments until December 23, 2023. Under discussion is setting “action levels” at a 76 degree to 78 degree heat index. To clarify, the action level is not an indicator to stop work but to initiate precautions and worker education to prevent illness.
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MTA Construction & Development | | |
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October saw a slight reduction in reported incidents from the previous month but an increase in lost times. Specifically, there were 29 incidents resulting in eight lost times with five recordables (down from six in September). Slips, trips, and falls and struck-bys/against each accounted for 39 percent. No serious injuries were reported for the month. The month’s numbers are average for the year.
Overall, MTA lost time incidents for 2023 are trending slightly behind 2022, with a total of 51 lost times, one less than at this point in 2021. The majority of lost times are the result of slips, trips and falls.
Recordables are trending six percent higher than 2022; the leading cause is struck-bys/against. No serious injuries for the month were reported.
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Patrick Wehle, BTEA’s Executive Vice President, credited DOB and the Health Department on their recent substance abuse prevention campaign. From the release: “According to Health Department data, at least 269 construction workers died of an overdose in 2020, by far the most of any occupation included in the analysis. This mirrored national data … that found construction was an industry that saw more fatal overdoses than other occupations.”
In response, the DOB is visiting construction sites to promote awareness about the dangers of substance abuse and its impact on worker safety. The BTEA has also prepared education materials that address substance abuse within the larger framework of mental wellness and suicide prevention.
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Lessons Learned: Robert Torrieri, Safety Director from Component Assembly, shared an incident in Philadelphia involving a young apprentice who fell from scaffolding and sustained facial injuries. The worker is back on the job, but an investigation found he failed to check if the platform he was on was secure. This is a reminder to always perform due diligence and reinforce safety procedures with younger, less experienced workers.
Torrieri also talked about the importance of workers having CPR training. The skill saves lives on sites. It was noted the BTEA once provided CPR and first aid training for member employees. The BTEA President, Elizabeth Crowley, said the organization would look into reviving the practice.
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This report was provided by the BTEA New York | |
The Building Trades Employers' Association of New York (BTEA) is the construction contractor's unified advocate for construction safety standards, professional development, government affairs, public relations and fostering communication between public officials, public and private owners, labor, and the public. Realizing that a construction industry is essential to the vibrant future of New York City, its activities are dedicated to a building environment meeting the highest of environmental standards, integrity, cost efficiency, productivity and value that contributes to improving the quality of life in New York City. The BTEA represents 24 Construction Manager, General Contractor, Subcontractor and Specialty Trade contractor associations with over 1,200 individual contractor members. | | | | |
