Stand-Down to prevent fall accident injuries and deaths in construction moved to September 14th-18th

Fall is the number one cause of death for construction workers. Every year in America, 10,000 construction workers suffer serious injuries and 200 die in fall accidents. To raise awareness about this problem, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR) are organizing a yearly national campaign: The National Safety Stand-Down. The event lasts several days during which every construction company owner is invited to spend a day or at least a few hours with their employees to review fall safety protection. Thousands of construction companies are participating every year reaching millions of construction workers.

This year the event was supposed to be organized in May but many construction businesses were shut down because of the Covid-19 crisis. Therefore the 7th National Safety Stand-Down to prevent Falls has been moved to the 14th to 18th of September 2020.

For this year, the organizers suggest that the event be held virtually or that companies owners make sure that construction workers social distance during the stand-down. Video and webinar might be a good way to keep the stand-down safe for all.

OSHA, NIOSH and the CPWR are working on developing social distancing friendly activities and material that construction companies can use for their stand-down. The material can be found at https://stopconstructionfalls.com/. The website offers links to various presentations and video including some in Spanish related to:

how to organize a fall safety stand-down
fall injuries and how to prevent them
what to do after a construction worker fall?
Statistics related to fall injuries
Ladder safety
Fall through skylights prevention
Fall prevention for roofers

and more.

New info-graphics are also being developed in English and in Spanish for stand-down organizers to use in presentations and in social media. Organizers can also print these info-graphics and use them as posters on construction sites so all workers can see them and remember to be safe not only during the stand-down but every day.