National Ladder Safety Month Set for March 2017
March is an ideal time to highlight and encourage ladder safety because it coincides with Spring home improvement projects and the beginning of the construction season, and it precedes OSHA's National Fall Prevention Stand-Down, NSC's National Safety Month in June, and the ASSE national conference in June.
The American Ladder Institute has declared March 2017 as National Ladder Safety Month. ALI, a not-for-profit ladder association of ladder industry leaders dedicated to promoting safe ladder use, with representation and support from U.S. ladder manufacturers and their suppliers, created National Ladder Safety Month to heighten awareness and promote the safe use of ladders by homeowners and working professionals.
"Every year over 300 people die in ladder-related accidents and thousands suffer disabling injuries," said Ryan Moss, president of the American Ladder Institute and CEO of Little Giant Ladder Systems. "Without better training and continuous innovation in safety, planning, and product design, we will continue to see far too many fatalities. National Ladder Safety Month will heighten awareness, reinforce safety training, and educate homeowners and working professionals. The American Ladder Institute is calling upon all individuals and organizations throughout the nation to promote and to participate in ladder safety."
ALI urges safety professionals and the public to join the ladder safety conversation on social media using #LadderSafetyMonth and #LadderSafety.
During March 2017, ALI members will emphasize:
- Reducing the number of ladder-related injuries and fatalities
- Lowering the rankings of ladder-related safety citations on OSHA's yearly Top 10 citations list
- Boosing the number of completed ladder safety training sessions completed on www.laddersafetytraining.org
- Increasing the number of recorded competent ladder inspector trainings
- Raising the number of companies that inspect and properly dispose of old, damaged, or obsolete ladders
March is an ideal time to highlight and encourage ladder safety because it coincides with Spring home improvement projects and the beginning of the construction season, and it precedes OSHA's National Fall Prevention Stand-Down, NSC's National Safety Month in June, and the ASSE national conference in June.
Safety trainings, industry special events, and downloadable materials will be available on the soon-to-be-launched LadderSafetyMonth.com website.