Putting a Spotlight on Safety

Industry groups to put focus on safety by working together and sharing best practices

It doesn’t take long to find an instance of safety not being followed in this industry. Just open your web browser and search “trench collapse” or “utility accident” and you’ll find a plethora of news articles, videos and more related to incidents.

We’ve featured articles focusing on safety within Dig Different numerous times — both in print and online — because it is so important. It’s a subject I like to refer back to often throughout this publication.

When industry associations and organizations vow to work together to improve safety awareness, it’s a great day. This happened back in April in Wisconsin when OSHA’s Wisconsin-area offices signed an alliance with the Wisconsin Underground Contractors Association and the Wisconsin Safety and Health Consultation Program to promote safety in the trenching and excavation industries.

The alliance will focus on hazards related to trenching, struck-by, underground utilities, confined space entry and roadway work zone safety goals by sharing WUCA’s good practices on trenching and excavation safety.

AWARENESS ON RISKS

According to OSHA, 37 workers lost their lives in trenching and excavation work in 2022 and the industry is among the most dangerous in the nation.

“Alliance agreements provide a collaborative framework for using industry and professional resources to ensure workplaces are safe for everyone involved,” says Chris Zortman, OSHA area director in Milwaukee.

The organizations involved in the alliance are planning to do several things together, including sharing WUCA’s good practices on trenching and excavation safety; collaborating on training programs, workshops, seminars and lectures; and developing and distributing case studies on trenching incidents as learning tools, and more.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITY

With both groups working together to raise awareness on safety, it is hopeful that the fatality and accident rates will go down in 2023, but it’s going to take more than two groups doing the work to make that happen. It will take you and your team as well.

The first thing you and your company can do is hold weekly safety meetings or safety evaluations before each job to go over the risks at each job site. Having those meetings will bring awareness and keep it fresh in the minds of those working the jobs.

Talk to your team members and see if they have any suggestions for increasing safety. The crew working in the field might have some fresh ideas with scenarios they see day-to-day. Letting them have a voice will also show their importance to the company.

Getting your team to safety training at conferences will help also. These can be conferences held within your own state or at bigger events such as trade shows. These conferences will allow you and your team to hear from experts in the industry and in the safety field.