MIOSHA Urges Contractors to Register for 'Building Up Residential Safety Day'
Staffers will visit residential construction sites to focus on specific hazards the employers have requested. No citations and penalties for participating employers will be issued, but participants must agree to correct all serious conditions.
The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) is inviting residential construction contractors to take part in the Aug. 14 "Building Up Residential Safety Day," which is part of the agency's Residential Construction Initiative. Employers must register by July 23 in order to participate.
On that day, MIOSHA compliance and consultation staffers will visit Michigan residential work sites and will focus on specific hazards and areas that the employer has requested. "There will be NO CITATIONS and NO PENALTIES for participating residential workplaces. Participants must agree to correct all serious conditions," MIOSHA notes.
To register, fill out the online form and email from that page, or save the completed form and attach it to an email addressed to [email protected]. A MIOSHA representative will contact those who register to set up the visit's time and place; call 517-322-1809 for more information.
The initiative was launched because residential construction growth in recent years resulted in higher injury rates and fatalities in Michigan. Citing the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, MIOSHA reports that the total case incident rate for Michigan construction increased from 2.6 injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in 2011 to 5.0 in 2012. During 2008–2013, more than 37 percent of construction fatalities in Michigan occurred in the residential industry.