OSHA News Release
-
Region 7
Region 7 News Release: 14-992-KAN
June 2, 2014
Contact: Scott Allen Rhonda Burke
Phone: 312-353-6976
Email: allen.scott@dol.gov burke.rhonda@dol.gov
Safety Pays, Falls Cost: Faith Technologies hosts OSHA Fall Safety
Stand-Down event at Lenexa, Kan., communications tower training lab
LENEXA, Kan. – Falls are the leading cause of death in the construction industry, and they accounted for 12 percent of all occupational injuries in 2012. In an effort to prevent these injuries and fatalities through education and outreach, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration launches the 2014 Fall Safety Stand-Down, which will be held from June 2-6. An estimated 1 million workers and 25,000 businesses, including construction industry leaders, will halt their work for one hour during that week to discuss the importance of recognizing fall hazards and implementing fall safety measures.
Faith Technologies, a national electrical contractor, will be a part of this nationwide effort on Tuesday, June 3 beginning at 10 a.m. CDT. Workers will attend the event at the company's state-of-the-art tower training laboratory in Lenexa where they will see demonstrations of safety and health best practices for the communications tower industry so that they can successful perform any aspect of work "at height" in the wireless industry. The stand-down is being coordinated through the Wichita Area OSHA office.
"Falls account for more than a third of all deaths in the construction industry," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "One fall can cost an employer their business and a worker their life. Every person participating in these events is showing their commitment to preventing a senseless loss of life and livelihood."
The stand-down is part of OSHA's ongoing Fall Prevention Campaign, which was started in 2012 and was developed in partnership with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and NIOSH's National Occupational Research Agenda program.
OSHA is collaborating with the National Association of Tower Erectors and other industry stakeholders to ensure that every communication tower employer understands their responsibility to protect workers performing this high-hazard work. OSHA has a web page targeting the issues surrounding communication tower work, which is available at http://www.osha.gov/doc/topics/communicationtower/index.html.
WHO: Chuck Rutledge, Safety Director for Faith Technologies
Judy Freeman, OSHA Area Director, Wichita, Kan.
WHAT: Fall Safety Stand-Down
WHERE: Faith Technology Communications Tower Training Laboratory
11806 Strang Line Road
College Crossing Business Park
Lenexa, KS 66215
WHEN: Tuesday, June 3, 2014
10 a.m. CDT (best time for interviews is 11 a.m.CDT)
Add to your iCal/Outlook calendar
Join the conversation on Twitter by using #StandDown4Safety and tagging @USDOL
Press interested in attending these events should contact
Scott Allen or Rhonda Burke using the contact information provided above
and Karen Schlieve for Faith Technologies, 920-574-3253
# # #
U.S. Department of Labor news materials are accessible at http://www.dol.gov. The department's Reasonable Accommodation Resource Center converts departmental information and documents into alternative formats, which include Braille and large print. For alternative format requests, please contact the department at (202) 693-7828 (voice) or (800) 877-8339 (federal relay).