On Aug. 17, 2012, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a direct final rule that will apply the requirements of the new cranes and derricks in construction standard – Subpart CC – to underground construction and demolition work.

Construction professionals will be able to take a wide range of mandatory and optional safety training programs online thanks to a new collaboration between the Associated General Contractors of America and ClickSafety, which is authorized by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to provide its online Outreach Training Program. Association officials added that the collaboration will provide a range of online construction-related safety courses, including the mandatory OSHA 10- and 30-hour safety training programs for employees of its member firms.

AGC teamed up with four other construction-related groups to form the Construction Coalition for a Drug- and Alcohol-Free Workplace. The coalition’s mission is to create a drug- and alcohol-free construction industry by providing companies and organizations with the resources necessary to implement drug- and alcohol-free policies into their business practices. 

AGC’s premier meeting for safety and health professionals will take place July 11-13, 2012, in Washington, D.C.  Join more than 150 industry professionals and participate in the development of regulatory and legislative activity on both a national and local level, assist in the development and creation of new safety training programs and products, and hear the latest initiatives from OSHA and other industry experts.

Falls are the most fatal hazard in the construction industry, accounting for almost one in every three construction worker deaths in this country. In 2010, more than 10,000 construction workers were injured as a result of falling while working from heights, and another 255 workers were killed. Earlier this year AGC of America launched a new fall protection safety training program. The association is using a $130,000 Susan Harwood Training Grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to address fall hazards in the construction industry. The safety program provides comprehensive information about fall protection for both commercial and residential construction.  AGC is offering the safety training program in eight different sites during 2012 and expects to instruct more than 500 construction workers during the year.

Sixty-eight percent of the nation’s highway contractors had motor vehicles crash into their construction work zones during the past year, according to the results of a new highway work zone study conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America.  Association officials added that the study found those work zone crashes are more likely to kill construction workers than they are to kill vehicle operators or passengers.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is reopening the rulemaking record to extend the comment period on revising the record keeping and reporting requirements for work-related injuries and illnesses. OSHA is extending the comment period in response to a stakeholder request. Individuals interested in submitting comments must do so by Oct. 28, 2011.

The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration released a new edition of its Whistleblower Investigations Manual, one of a series of measures to improve OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program that were announced in August.

AGC will launch a new fall protection safety training program next year thanks to a new federal safety grant the association is being awarded. The association will use the $130,000 Susan Harwood Training Grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to tackle one of the most pressing safety issues in construction, officials said.

WASHINGTON – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration today issued a directive on Enforcement Procedures for Investigating or Inspecting Incidents of Workplace Violence. The directive establishes uniform procedures for OSHA field staff for responding to incidents and complaints of workplace violence and conducting inspections in industries considered vulnerable to workplace violence, such as healthcare and social service settings, and late-night retail establishments.