Welcome to the Building Trades Employers’ Association of New York's (BTEA) 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 September 20th meeting with representatives from the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB), Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). | |
BTEA Gala: 120 Years Strong | | |
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The BTEA will celebrate 120 years strong at its annual gala on Tuesday, November 21, 2023. The event, taking place at Cipriani, 110 East 42nd Street in Manhattan, will highlight the important projects and accomplishments of BTEA member companies, many of which are “generations strong.” We are soliciting historical facts from other associations, as well as from our member companies. Members can send information and historical facts about our organizations to Mo Salaheen at [email protected] or 347-774-6915. Mo is also the contact for ticket info and sponsorship opportunities. | |
Elizabeth Crowley
BTEA President & CEO
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Construction Suicide Prevention Week | | |
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September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and the week of September 5th was National Construction Suicide Prevention Week. The week is specifically dedicated to the construction industry, as it has the highest suicide rate of any profession. For perspective, there are an estimated 1,000 deaths annually on construction sites nationally resulting from recognized hazards like falls and struck-bys, while more than 5,000 construction workers a year take their own lives. The crisis was the impetus behind June’s successful Safebuild Forum dedicated to mental wellness and the subsequent establishment of a Suicide Prevention Advisory Board. The group, which includes mental health professionals, labor, and BTEA members Turner Construction and Lendlease, collaborated on a 10-minute suicide prevention video that was widely shared and can be found on the BTEA website, along with other sharable resources. Starting September 5th, dozens of BTEA contractors hosted Mental Awareness Toolbox Talks on their work sites. The campaign has also garnered media attention, including a spread in the New York Daily News. Mental health and suicide prevention will continue to be a focus issue for the BTEA in the weeks and months ahead.
Patrick A. Wehle
BTEA Executive Vice President
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Construction Wellbeing Initiative | | |
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Suicide is the “tip of mental health iceberg” in the construction industry, which results from worker burnout, risk trauma, isolation, and mounting labor shortages. SkillSignal is a safety compliance and risk software platform that services the construction industry. Working in partnership with the Princeton University Kahneman-Triesman Center for Behavioral Science and Public Policy, SkillSignal launched its Construction Wellness Initiative (CWI). Now entering its second year, CWI provides construction workers with wellbeing solutions through evidence-based mental health resources, interventions, and programs, all available at wellbeing.construction, an exhaustive database of proven workplace wellness ideas. | |
10th Avenue Partial Tower Crane Collapse | | |
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The July 2023 fire and crane collapse on Manhattan’s West Side injured 12 people and prompted DOB to require inspections of all tower cranes across the city. All new erections of tower cranes will require the installation of a fire suppression system. Favco, a manufacturer of tower cranes, published a safety bulletin in 2016 calling for the installation of fire suppression systems, however the bulletin was not shared broadly with the industry and DOB. The BTEA met with DOB Commissioner Oddo and his senior staff to discuss their plans for tower cranes and collaborate on additional measures to improve crane safety. DOB certification protocols for erecting tower cranes can be viewed here. | | |
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September 2023 Incident Report
● In July, DOB inspected 3,575 jobsites, issuing 1,142 violations. In August, there were 3,651 inspections, resulting in 1,137 violations issued.
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● There were 284 Stop Work Orders (SWOs) in July and 415 SWO reinspections. For August, there were 290 SWOs and 446 reinspections.
● DOB responded to 832 complaints in July and 893 in August.
● July saw 68 incidents resulting in 82 injuries, including one fatality. (A worker used a high-powered gas saw to cut a wood joist and was struck by the saw – a case of the wrong tool for that particular task). In August, there were 67 incidents and 78 injuries.
No fatalities.
● SWO reinspection time for July and is approximately 1.5 days.
● DOB issued 10 Local Law 196 violations (improper or lack of SSD card) and 15 in August.
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Occupational Safety and
Health Administration
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OSHA is working on changes to personal protective equipment (PPE) regulations to ensure the design and selection of equipment is a proper fit for each employee. OSHA is also accepting comments on its proposed Worker Walkaround Representative Designation Process, which would grant workers the ability to select a third party not employed by their company to represent them during an OSHA "walkaround" inspection. Comments are due by Oct. 30, and can be forwarded electronically at https://www.regulations.gov.
OSHA’s recent NEP directive focused on fall prevention has been in effect since August. The new language states compliance safety and health officers can now open inspections whenever they observe anyone working at height. To date, OSHA hasn’t noted a “wave” of new inspections as a result of the change.
OSHA is participating in suicide prevention and wellness talks on jobsites.
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MTA Construction & Development | | |
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August saw an increase in the number of active projects and the number of workers on construction sites, but incidents have remained stable. For the month, there were 30 incidents resulting in four lost times with four recordables, which is consistent with July’s numbers. Struck-bys/Against were the leading category of lost time incidents (43 percent), followed by slips, trips and falls (27 percent).
For the year to date, there have been 35 reported lost time incidents, a decrease of 20 percent from the same reporting period last year. The highest reported injuries are slips, trips and falls, accounting for 29 percent of incidents. There were 39 recordable incidents YTD, a change of three percent (one incident) from this time last year.
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Fire Department of the City of New York | | |
The department is steadily recovering from a shortage of inspectors due to retirements and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fifty new inspectors were brought on in August, with another class of 55 coming in October. The department now has two inspectors licensed to train in OSHA 30, ensuring every new inspector class will benefit from their training. The increased staff will be critical in the coming months. Fall is heating season, and the demand for permits requiring inspection jumps from an average of 350 per month to 550-600 per month. | | |
Elizabeth Crowley introduced the BTEA’s new Director of Development, Mohammed “Mo” Saleheen. Mo is collecting contractor histories and anecdotes for the 120th Anniversary Gala. Please forward to Mo at [email protected] or call 347-774-6915. | |
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. | | | | |
