National Fall Safety Stand-Down Takes Place May 8-12

May 3, 2017 - Falls are the leading cause of death for construction workers, accounting for 350 of the 937 construction fatalities recorded in 2015. To raise awareness of fall hazards, OSHA, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Center for Construction Research and Training will hold the fourth annual National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction from May 8-12. The weeklong event encourages employers to pause during their workday for topic discussions, safety demonstrations, and trainings in hazard recognition and fall prevention.

OSHA is offering new resources that emloyers can use in their discussions with employees during the National Safety Stand-Down. Two videos have been posted on the Stand-Down homepage and a series of infographics can be downloaded from OSHA's Fall Prevention Campaign webpage. OSHA also encourages posting of the new videos and infographics on social media using the hashtag #StandDown4Safety.

As part of the Stand-Down, the National Roofing Contractors Association will host a free webinar on May 8 to discuss the hazards present after a worker has fallen from a roof and his or her personal fall-arrest system has deployed or activated. NRCA will also host a live Facebook chat on May 10 to discuss trending roofing and construction safety topics. For more events being held across the country, see OSHA’s Stand-Down events page.