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IBEW, Electrical Transmission and Distribution Construction Contractors, and Trade Associations (#325)
| Partnership Signatories: |
Asplundh Tree Expert Co.
Edison Electric Institute (EEI)
Henkels & McCoy, Inc.
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)
MDU Construction Services Group, Inc
MYR Group Inc.
National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA)
Pike Electric, Inc.
Quanta Services, Inc. |
| Date Signed: |
August 20, 2004; Renewed: August
24, 2006; Renewed: September 16, 2008; Renewed: January 25, 2011 |
| Contact Information: |
Directorate of Cooperative and
State Programs, (202) 693-2213 |
| Links: |
Partnership Agreements
Partnership Annual Evaluations
OSHA renews Strategic Partnership with electrical contractors and industry
trade associations. OSHA News Release (2008, October 14).
OSHA renews strategic partnership with power transmission and distribution trade associations to reduce worker injuries, deaths. OSHA News Release (2011, January 26).
OSHA Renews Partnership for Electrical Workers' Safety. Occupational Health and Safety Magazine News Release (2011, January 27).
Electrical Transmission and Distribution Strategic Partnership Safety Video. An ET&D Partnership developed safety video.
Powerlinesafety.org An ET&D partnership supported public Web site.
Construction Industry Partnerships
Signing Photos September 16, 2008
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Partnership Overview
OSHA has joined with representatives from the power transmission and distribution
industry, as well as trade and labor representatives, to develop a common vision and commitment
to provide employees in the electrical transmission and distribution industry (the
"Industry") with a safe and healthful workplace, and to demonstrate leadership, responsibility and
accountability in furthering worker health and safety.
Partnership Goals
The primary goal of the Partnership is to reduce the number of fatalities, injuries, and illnesses in
the Industry. Additionally, the Partnership will aim to:
- Perform data analysis as a means to establish causes of fatalities,
injuries, and illnesses for electrical work in the Industry
- Develop recommended Best Practices to reduce the number of fatalities,
injuries and illnesses that directly correspond to the identified causes, as
well as any other significant hazards identified by the Partnership
- Ensure that the Industry Partners' employees are effectively trained to
utilize the established Best Practices
- Effectively communicate safety and health Best Practices, and other useful
safety and health information, within the Industry
- Establish an effective evaluation strategy to ensure that the goals of the OSP
are met
Partnership Objectives
Partnership goals will be achieved through strategies and objectives that include:
- Analyze accident and incident data to identify common causes for
fatalities, injuries, and illnesses suffered by linemen, apprentices, and other
appropriate job classifications
- Develop recommended Best Practices for each identified cause
- Develop implementation strategies for each Best Practice and share these
strategies among the partners
- Identify training criteria for foremen, general foremen, supervisors,
linemen, and apprentices, including training to promote industry culture change
to place value on safety and health
Partnership Results
The partnership made significant progress in 2009 by reducing the number of
fatalities, injuries and illnesses, and conducting training courses as follows:
Fatalities
By working on the partnership goals, partnership employer participants during
calendar year 2009 succeeded in reducing the number of fatal accidents they
experienced. The partnership reported two fatalities in 2009; which is a
reduction of six partner fatalities in 2008. The fatalities in 2009 were as a
result of electrocution by contact. As part of the Partnership Agreement, only
those partner fatalities resulting from electrical transmission and distribution
(ET&D) line work are tracked for the purposes of the partnership.
Partnership Injury and Illness Rate Changes 2005-2009
Partnership participants, as a group, have also reduced their average injury and
illness rates when comparing rates from 2005 to 2009. In 2009, the partnership
participants’ average TCIR of 2.95 was 57 percent below that of the partnership
average TCIR of 5.18 in 2005. Similarly, in 2009, the partnership participants’
average DART rate of 1.42 was 56 percent below that of the partnership average
DART rate of 3.21 in 2005. Compared to the TCIR and DART rates calculated for
this industry by the BLS for 2008, the partnership rates were almost equivalent
to the BLS averages.
Partnership Injury and Illness Rate Changes Comparing 2008 to 2009
Partnership participating employer participants, as a group, achieved a TCIR of
2.95 in 2009. This figure represents a 27 percent decrease from its 2008 TCIR of
4.04. Partnership participating employer participants, as a group, achieved a
DART rate of 1.42 in 2009. This figure represents a 22 percent decrease from its
2008 DART rate of 1.81.
Training
The Training Task Team coordinates the training efforts for the partnership.
Some of the duties of this Task Team include: developing training courses as
needed to address the identified causal factors of accidents; tracking the
training courses and promoting the partnership’s training efforts throughout the
industry. The partnership developed and delivered training curriculum to ensure
that workers, who frequently move among companies, receive consistent, quality
training. Also the training identifies and shares best practices and information
to prevent the occurrence of fatalities and injuries and establishes
relationships that foster information sharing within the industry.
During 2009, the partnership partners continued to conduct the Supervisory
Leadership Skills Outreach Training Course (SLSOT). This course is designed to
help foremen/general foremen create a safe work culture on the job and course
attendees receive an OSHA training card upon successfully completing the course.
A total of 1,173 supervisors and managers completed this training during this
evaluation period.
In addition, 4,393 workers successfully completed the ET&D industry-specific
OSHA 10-Hour Outreach Training Program course during this evaluation period.
This number includes apprentices, journeymen, foremen and general foremen.
Also, the partnership participant employers collaborated with OSHA to begin work
on developing a proposal to utilize OSHA’s twenty-five Training and Education
Centers as venues in which to conduct the ET&D industry-specific OSHA 10-Hour
Outreach Training Program and ET&D Train the Trainer courses nationwide for
partner and non-partner workers.
Partnership Benefits
Through the OSHA and ET&D partnership, OSHA staff and the participants continued
to build on the excellent working relationship since the initial partnership was
signed in 2004. Communication between the industry partners and OSHA
demonstrates commitment to the partnership and raised safety and health
awareness for the ET&D industry.
The partnership encourages OSHA, industry safety professionals, workers and
labor representatives to participate in the occupational safety and health
process. For example, an MYR representative reported that the company’s workers
are becoming more aware of the OSHA and ET&D partnership and its efforts to
improve worker safety and health established by implementing the agreement.
In addition, one of the successes of the partnership is due, in part, to its
unique management structure. The partnership’s Executive Team, made up of
CEO-level management, meets approximately three to four times per year to
approve partnership activities and products and to manage overall partnership
implementation. During this evaluation period the Executive Team met three
times; on January 20, 2009; May 21, 2009; and September 15, 2009.
The partnership’s Steering Team, made up of employer participants’ safety and
health managers, meets approximately every four to six weeks, manages day-to-day
operations of the partnership and serves as the liaison between the Executive
Team and the Task Teams. During this evaluation period, the Steering Team met
nine times; on January 19, 2009; March 16, 2009; April 13, 2009; May 20, 2009;
June 18, 2009; August 4, 2009; September 14, 2009; October 27, 2009 and December
12, 2009.
Task Teams are groups of workers and supervisors who meet as needed to focus on
specific partnership activities.
The partnership demonstrates benefits for the participants through a continual
decrease in fatalities. By working on common goals, analyzing accident and
injury data for causal factors and implementing best practices, the partnership
participating employers’ injury and illness rates also have been reduced.
Partnership Approved Best Practices
Additional Resources
The ET&D Partnership maintains a Web site in support of this Partnership. For
more information visit
Power Line Safety
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution eTool. An OSHA online eTool for the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Industry.
Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Industry. An OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page for the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Industry.
OSHA Campaign to Prevent Heat Illness in Outdoor Workers. An OSHA Web page and online resources to prevent heat illness in outdoor workers.
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