SAFETY PROFESSIONALS' ROLE IN CONTRACTOR QUALITY PROGRAMS

Abstract

Contractor Selection The construction industry historically has measured contractor safety excellence through the benchmarking of contractors' experience modification rate (EMR) and OSHA total recordable incident rate (TRIR). Today, most trade partners safety prequalification processes have advanced to include an evaluation of safety programs, sitespecific safety plans, safety orientations, job hazard analysis and weekly safety meetings. While effective quality control programs structurally mirror effective safety and health programs, an often-missing quality program component is the construction industry's key two-way communication with trade workers during these crew meetings. Conclusion The construction industry has reduced trade injury rates partly through engaging trade workers during weekly safety meetings to increase communication with trade workers and across multiemployer projects, express safety expectations and increase safety knowledge among teams.