There’s a lot going on in the safety world this month. I wanted to highlight a few notable news items.

National Ladder Safety Month

National Ladder Safety Month is observed every March. Started by the American Ladder Safety Institute (ALI), the event raises awareness about ladder safety and encourages employers and their workers to engage in annual ladder safety training.

ALI’s Ladder Safety Training site, www.laddersafetytraining.org, offers a variety of free training courses to work with your organization’s existing program.

Throughout the month of March, ALI is taking deep dives into different aspects of ladder safety, focusing on one topic per week to promote safety tips and training. This year’s topics include Week One: Training and Awareness; Week Two: Inspection and Maintenance; Week Three: Stabilization, Setup, and Accessories; and Week Four: Safe Climbing and Positioning.

OSHA finds violations at Elon Musk Vegas tunnel project

The Boring Company was been fined more than $112,000 for safety violations by Nevada OSHA, according to state records Bloomberg Businessweek obtained via a freedom of information request.

According to the OSHA inspection, 15 to 20 workers suffered chemical rashes and burns while working at the Las Vegas tunnel site over two months in summer 2023.

For more information, see the article, “Elon Musk’s Boring Company Cited by OSHA for Serious Safety Violations”.

Women in Construction

March also feature Women in Construction Week. Did you know that the largest percentage of job roles held by women in the construction industry are those in management roles?

According to recent statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), approximately 1.29 million women form part of the U.S. construction industry; that’s 3,000 more women compared to the previous year.

For more statistics and information on women in construction, check out our feature article in this issue.

ISHN polls

This month, we’re asking readers about their priorities when it comes to safety in the workplace. Take a minute to participate in our poll here: https://www.ishn.com/polls/28-safety-priorities

Our February poll was on winter hazards featuring this question: Does your workplace provide adequate resources and training for weather-related emergencies? Forty percent of respondents said they have comprehensive resources and training programs, but 26 percent replied that they think there is a lack of resources and training for weather emergencies. What do you think? Access all of our monthly polls to see the results and chime in at www.ishn.com/polls.