AGREEMENT RENEWING AN ALLIANCE
BETWEEN
THE HOUSTON NORTH AND HOUSTON SOUTH AREA OFFICES
THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
AND
THE ASSOCIATED BUILDERS AND CONTRACTORS (ABC) OF GREATER HOUSTON, ASSOCIATED GENERAL CONTRACTORS (AGC) HOUSTON CHAPTER, AMERCIAN SUBCONTRACTORS ASSOCIATATION (ASA) HOUSTON CHAPTER, HEALTH AND SAFETY COUNCIL (HASC), INDUSTRY BUSINESS ROUND TABLE (IBR), AND UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON CLEAR LAKE (UHCL).

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Houston North and Houston South Area Offices and the Associated Builders and Contractors of Greater Houston (ABC), Associated General Contractors Houston Chapter (AGC), American Subcontractors Association Houston Chapter (ASA), Health and Safety Council (HASC), Industry Business Round Table (IBR), and University of Houston Clear Lake (UHCL) continue to recognize the value of maintaining a collaborative relationship to foster safety and health practices and programs to improve American workplaces. To that end, OSHA and the ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL hereby renew the Alliance signed May 3, 2022, and renewed April 26, 2024, with a continued emphasis on preventing injuries and fatalities from falls within the local construction industry. Specifically, each organization(s) are committed to providing ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL members and stakeholders with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help them protect workers and understand the rights of workers and the responsibilities of employers under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act). Through the Alliance, the organizations will continue to address fall hazards and the rest of the focus four construction hazards.

This agreement provides a framework and objectives for the Alliance's activities. Alliance participants also agree to meet the requirements for program participation laid out in the "Fundamental Requirements for OSHA Alliance Program Participants" and the "Guidelines for OSHA's Alliance Program Participants: Alliance Products and Other Alliance Projects."

Through the Alliance, the organizations will use injury, illness, and hazard exposure data, when appropriate, to help identify areas of emphasis for Alliance awareness, outreach, and communication activities. The Alliance will also explore and implement selected options, including but not limited to surveys, to evaluate the Alliance and measure the impact on improving workplace safety and health. In renewing this Alliance, OSHA and the ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL recognize that OSHA's State Plan and On-Site Consultation Program partners are an integral part of the OSHA national effort, and that information about the products and activities of the Alliance may be shared with these partners for the advancement of common goals.

Raising Awareness: Outreach and Communication

The Participants intend to work together to achieve the following objectives

• Share information on OSHA's National/Regional/Local Initiatives (Emphasis Programs, Regulatory Agenda, Outreach), and opportunities to participate in initiatives and the rulemaking process.

• Share information on occupational safety and health laws and standards, including the rights and responsibilities of workers and employers.

• Develop information on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards, and communicate such information (e.g., print and electronic media, electronic assistance tools, and OSHA and the ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL websites) to employers and workers in the industry. Ensure information developed reflects the workforce and is available in multiple languages and formats.

• Speak, exhibit, or appear at OSHA and ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL conferences, local meetings, or other events as they may arise and provide opportunities for the Alliance to reach stakeholders.

• Convene or participate in forums, roundtable discussions, or stakeholder meetings on fall prevention and the three other construction focus four hazards to help forge innovative solutions in the workplace or to provide input on safety and health issues.

• Share information among OSHA personnel and industry safety and health professionals regarding ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL good practices or effective approaches through training programs, workshops, seminars, and lectures (or any other applicable forum).

• Ensure Alliance activities are informed by the perspectives of non-managerial workers employed in the construction industry by the collection of feedback gathered through various gathering methods such as employee surveys.

• Collaborate with other Alliance participants on specific issues and projects on the construction industry focus four hazards.

• Develop and disseminate case studies on fall prevention and the other three constructions focus four hazards and publicize their results.

• Encourage every construction worksite where Alliance stakeholders and their employees have a presence to build relationships with OSHA's Regional and Area Offices to address health and safety issues, including OSHA's constructions focus four hazards.

Training and Education

The Participants intend to work together to achieve the following objectives:

• Develop effective training and education programs for workers regarding constructions fall, and the other three construction focus hazards (electrical, struck-by, caught in/between hazards), and communicate such information to constituent employers and workers. Ensure training materials/programs are made available in appropriate languages and formats to meet the needs of their target audiences.

• Deliver or arrange for the delivery of courses designed to help identify, eliminate or mitigate construction focus four hazards.

• Develop effective training and education programs for workers to promote understanding of workers' rights, including the use of the OSHA complaint process, and the responsibilities of employers and to communicate such information to workers and employers. Ensure training materials/programs are made available in appropriate languages and formats to meet the needs of their target audiences.

OSHA's Alliances provide organizations an opportunity to participate in a voluntary cooperative relationship with OSHA for purposes such as raising awareness of OSHA's initiatives, outreach, communication, training, and education. These Alliances have proven to be valuable tools for both OSHA and Alliance participants. In entering this Alliance, OSHA and the ABC, AGC, ASA, HASC, IBR, and UHCL acknowledge that this agreement is not legally binding. This agreement does not obligate or authorize the expenditure or reimbursement of appropriations or other funds, nor does it require the parties to enter into any contract or other obligations. It does not confer any rights or responsibilities under U.S. law, nor does it limit or restrict the parties from participating in similar activities or arrangements with other entities. This agreement does not limit, supersede, or otherwise affect OSHA's normal operations or decisions in carrying out its statutory and regulatory duties and functions. OSHA's entering an Alliance with an organization does not imply the agency's endorsement or promotion of that organization's products or services.

An implementation team made up of representatives of each organization will meet one to two times per year to track and share information on activities and results in achieving the goals of the Alliance. OSHA team members will include representatives of the Houston North and Houston South Area Offices and any other appropriate offices. OSHA will encourage State Plans' and OSHA On-Site Consultation programs' participation on the team.

This agreement will be executed in full compliance with all applicable federal laws. It takes effect on the date of signing and will remain in effect for two years. Any signatory may terminate their organization's participation in the agreement for any reason at any time, provided they give 30 days' written notice. This agreement may be modified at any time with the written concurrence of all signatories.

Signed this 23rd day of April, 2026.