Preventing falls and electrocutions is the latest emphasis of a special program to reduce the number of construction fatalities in Florida, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced. The new fall and electrocution focus of the agency’s Construction Accident Reduction Emphasis Program (CARE) was explained at meetings on May 23 and 24 in Ft. Lauderdale. “Too many Florida construction workers are killed on the job,” said Cindy A. Coe, OSHA regional administrator for the Southeast. “And too many of the deaths are the result of falls or contact with overhead power lines.”
After the first year of the CARE program’s enforcement and outreach activities, Florida reversed its alarming rise in construction fatalities. With the addition this year of the two local emphasis programs, OSHA hopes to reduce worker deaths in the state.
On April 18, JEA, the Florida Department of Labor-Division of Safety, and OSHA signed a formal partnership agreement which helps each organization to protect workers more effectively. JEA has agreed to hold contractors and subcontractors at all JEA job sites to tight safety and health guidelines. OSHA also expects to enter into a partnership with South Florida Construction Safety and Health, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to improving workplace safety and health conditions for employees. The partnership will consist of representatives from contractor and subcontractor associations, labor organizations, trade associations, safety associations, local universities and insurers.
Interested parties can obtain more information about CARE projects or about safety and health in the construction industry by contacting one of the three OSHA area offices in Florida: Jacksonville, (904) 232-2895, Ft. Lauderdale, (954) 424-0242, or Tampa, (813) 626-1177.
From the Daily Regulatory Reporter
