The National Utility Contractors Association (NUCA) is again highlighting trench safety for the month of June, including the annual safety education program Trench Safety Stand Down, scheduled for the week of June 15-19.
For the past 10 years in June, NUCA has held the Trench Safety Stand Down (TSSD) for the utility construction industry. This year’s event, sponsored by NUCA National Partners National Trench Safety, Sunstate Equipment Co./Trench Safety Rentals, Contractor Solutions, and United Rentals, will occur at hundreds of job sites across the nation, reaching tens of thousands of employees.
TSSD Week is a series of organized events held by NUCA and industry professionals — both member and non-member organizations — to emphasize the message of safety around job site trenches and excavations. The event week is strongly supported by OSHA and the Trenching and Excavation Safety Taskforce. TSSD Week is used by industry safety professionals to hold safety training, educational seminars, live demonstrations of trench rescues, and other activities to reinforce the message of trench safety.
NUCA has also declared all of June to be Trench Safety Month. The association is devoting the month to getting the message out to the public and non-NUCA industry companies about the importance of employee safety when working underground or in and around trenches. To grow this strong message of safety, the national association will be leveraging the safety messages of TSSD through NUCA’s social media channels, internal publications, and the construction trade press to emphasize several key safety ideas well known through TSSD materials.
NUCA is also partnering this month with the Trenching Excavation Safety Taskforce (TEST) to share information about staying safe in and around excavations. The partnership will be promoting awareness of trench safety and the many training programs offered to industry members.
Selecting June as Trench Safety Month is a natural tie-in to the lessons and demonstrations being completed at thousands of NUCA member job sites during TSSD Week. In 2025, more than 24,200 industry employees and first responders at over 461 job sites from 330 organizations took part in the event.
National statistics on trench injuries and deaths peaked in 2022 but have since declined significantly due to heightened OSHA enforcement and industry efforts. OSHA reported 39 trench collapse deaths in 2022, falling to 15 in 2023, 13 in 2024, and 18 in 2025. These accidents are entirely preventable with thorough training in excavation safety procedures, proper protective systems, and strict adherence to OSHA standards.
Participation in Trench Safety Month and TSSD has become more important in recent years, as the industry remains engaged on hundreds of water, wastewater, broadband, electric, and highway projects financed by the federal 2021 infrastructure law supported by NUCA. The industry is seeking tens of thousands of new employees to work on these projects, and every one of them will need safety training.
