Members' Edge - July 25, 2019

Safety

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=571995&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

Upcoming Safety Classes

Visit http://oshacon.org/ to view the full article online.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=571731&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

Keeping Workers Safe in the Summer Heat

Every year, dozens of workers die and thousands more become ill while working in extreme heat or humid conditions.

OSHA's Occupational Exposure to Heat page explains what employers can do to keep workers safe and what workers need to know - including factors for heat illness, adapting to working in indoor and outdoor heat, protecting workers, recognizing symptoms and first aid training. The page includes resources for specific industries and OSHA workplace standards.

Heat-related Illnesses and First Aid
Heat stroke, the most serious form of heat-related illness, happens when the body becomes unable to regulate its core temperature.

Heat exhaustion is the body's response to loss of water and salt from heavy sweating.

Heat cramps are caused by the loss of body salts and fluid during sweating.

Heat rash, also known as prickly heat, is skin irritation caused by sweat that does not evaporate from the skin.

View important information on Heat-related llnesses

Download the NIOSH Heat Safety Tool Smartphone App!

Click here for Apple link

Click here for Android link

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=571733&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

AGC News

Subscribe to AGC of America's Podcast

Learn all about some of the most significant technological innovations, including robotics and blockchain, changing the construction industry: ConstructorCast - Technology Changing the Construction Industry. The ConstructorCast is AGC of America's monthly podcast covering all the news, views, and interviews relevant to your construction business.

Visit http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?m=1119709320910&ca=e5cdc3f6-ef25-46a3-8acc-8ea1cb32464f to view the full article online.

AGC of America Needs Your Help! Answer Our Quick Survey on Labor Shortages

AGC of America and Autodesk are working to better quantify where these shortages are taking place, how severe they are, and what steps firms are taking to both cope with tight labor markets and improve the supply of new, qualified workers.

That is why we are asking members to take a few minutes to complete the workforce survey that we have prepared.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=571738&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

Construction Jobs Increase by 21K in June, as the Sector's Unemployment Rate Decreased to 4%

Construction employment increased by 21,000 jobs in June and by 224,000, or 3.2%, over the past 12 months, while the number of unemployed job seekers with construction experience fell. AGC of America's Stephen E. Sandherr, Chief Executive Officer noted that firms continue to increase pay as they work to attract new hires from an ever-tighter labor market. "Construction firms continue to go to great lengths to recruit and retain workers during one of the tightest labor markets many of them have ever experienced."

Visit https://www.agc.org/news/2019/07/08/construction-jobs-increase-21000-june-and-224000-during-past-year-sector%E2%80%99s to view the full article online.

Registration Opens for 2019 Construction HR And Training Professionals Conference

Attention Construction HR Professionals!

Registration is now open for the 2019 Construction HR and Training Professionals Conference(link is external) and pre-conference Strategic Management Workshop to be held Oct. 9-11 in Chicago.

AGC's “HR/TED Conference” provides two days of education and networking for HR, training, and workforce development professionals in the construction industry.

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=572239&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

Message from the President/CEO

Stand-Down Brings Stand-Up Results

Plan. Provide. Train… Three Simple Steps To Preventing Falls

That is the message on the OSHA.gov web page welcoming you to its Fall Prevention Campaign. From that page, and according to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, you learn that falls are the leading cause of death in construction. Deaths that are preventable.

With that in mind, Fall Prevention was once again the focus of AGC Houston’s Annual Safety Stand Down. The final numbers for the two-week event this past May show that over 18,000 workers participated – and heard – the message on preventing falls. Those are incredible numbers and truly highlight the commitment of the AGC Safety Committee and the many participating AGC member employers!

AGC Houston and its Safety Committee are extremely proud – as they should be – of the growth and the status of the Safety Stand-Down since its inception more than a decade ago.

Visit https://agchouston.org/AGCH/News/Articles/2019_Stand-Down_Brings_Stand-Up_Results.aspx to view the full article online.

News you can Use

Prairie View A&M to Host Construction Science Job Fair Career Event in September

The Construction Science Department at Prairie View A&M University will be holding its’ first career fair on Wednesday, Sept. 18 in the recently opened Fabrication Center, located southeast of the Nathelyne Archie-Kennedy Building. The event will be open to all students majoring in Construction Science plus those Architecture and Engineering students who are double majors in this field of study.

The evwent will includes a general session from 9 a.m. - noon that allows our students to obtain information about the construction firms in attendance and present their qualifications for internships and/or full-time employment.

See more information

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=571747&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

NIOSH Health Hazard Evaluation Program Helps Employers Assess Workplace Health Hazards

Do you have concerns about jobsite safety or potential health hazards that can affect your workforce?

The Health Hazard Evaluation (HHE) program of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) responds to requests for evaluations of workplace health hazards and conducts free studies of workplaces to determine if workers are exposed to hazardous materials or harmful conditions.

Check out more resources

Visit https://www.naylornetwork.com/hca-nwl/articles/index-v2.asp?aid=571744&issueID=65341 to view the full article online.

AGC Supports DOL Revisions to Joint Employer Status Under FLSA

On June 25, AGC submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division in response to its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking(NPRM) revising and clarifying the responsibilities of employers and joint employers to employees in joint employer arrangements. In 2017, the DOL withdrew the previous administrations sub-regulatory guidance regarding joint employer status that did not go through the rulemaking process that includes public notice and comment. The NPRM’s emphasis on the actual exercise of control as a prerequisite to a joint employer finding encourages cooperation between businesses without exposing them to potential liability under an uncertain standard.

Visit https://www.agc.org/sites/default/files/Galleries/labor_member_files/AGC%20Comments%20on%20Joint%20Employer%20Status%20NPRM%3B%20RIN%201235-AA24.pdf to view the full article online.

Major AGC TBB Construction Defects and Rights to Repair Bills Signed into Law

On June 14, Gov. Greg Abbott signed two major AGC Texas Building Branch bills that address construction defects in schools and the right to repair defects in public buildings into law.

The bill addressing school construction defects, House Bill 1734, will require school districts to spend funds to actually repair construction defects when those funds are awarded from a verdict or settlement resulting from the defects.

The "right to repair" bill has been one of AGC-TBB's top priorities for the last several years. House Bill 1999, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Leach (R-Plano), will allow those involved in designing or constructing a public building or public work a chance to inspect and repair alleged defects before being sued.

Visit https://constructorsvote.com/news/2019/agc-tbb-legislative-update to view the full article online.

EPA Reduces Amount Of Lead In Dust Considered A Hazard

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) EPA recently finalized a rule to reduce the dust-lead hazard levels on floors and window sills – from 40 micrograms (µg) of lead in dust per square foot (ft2) and 250 µg/ft2 to 10 µg/ft2 and 100 µg/ft2, respectively. The new standards take effect Jan. 6, 2020.

Visit http://newsmanager.commpartners.com/agcbuild/issues/2019-07-15/8.html to view the full article online.

Resources

IT'S HURRICANE SEASON

Hurricanes and the effects of severe thunderstorms pose high risks to construction sites, with their incomplete structures, expensive machinery and equipment, flood-prone excavations and building materials that can quickly become projectiles in high winds.
The AGC Houston Safety Committee has prepared the "Guidelines for Creation of Emergency Preparedness Plan," a highly useful, free document. Click here to download the document and to view other resources

OSHA's Hurricane Preparedness and Response page provides information on creating evacuation plans and supply kits and reducing hazards for hurricane response and recovery work..

Visit https://agchouston.org/AGCH/Safety/AGCH/Safety/Safety.aspx?hkey=e640e59b-5458-4d3d-90a5-09b039007e51 to view the full article online.