Photo: Dan Reynolds Photography/gettyimages
Washington — Construction companies that focus on leading indicators are, statistically, considerably safer than their peers, according to Associated Builders and Contractors.
ABC, a national trade association representing the nonunion construction industry, recently released its annual guide to construction jobsite health and safety best practices. The 2025 Health and Safety Performance Report is based on 2024 data from organizations that take part in ABC’s STEP Safety Management System. ABC collects each organization’s OSHA Form 300A data and “self-assessment of leading indicator practices” from its STEP application.
After analyzing the data, which covers more than 1 billion work hours completed by participants in the construction, heavy construction, civil engineering and specialty trades, ABC identified five foundations of industry-leading safety best practices:
New hire safety orientation. Employers who conduct “in-depth” orientation on health and safety culture, systems, and processes have total recordable incident rates, or TRIR, that are 52% lower than employers who limit their orientations to basic health and safety compliance. In addition, days away, restricted or transferred rates, or DART rates, are reduced by 56%.
Substance abuse prevention programs. Robust substance abuse prevention programs and policies with provisions for drug and alcohol testing, where permitted, lead to a 52% reduction in TRIR and a 55% reduction in DART rates.
Frequent toolbox talks. Employers who conduct daily toolbox talks experience a 78% reduction in TRIR and a 79% reduction in DART rates compared with those that conduct them monthly.
Top management engagement in safety best practices. This leads to a 49% reduction in TRIR and a 52% reduction in DART rates.
Leading indicators. Tracking and reviewing activities to prevent and control injuries, including safety training, leads to a 59% reduction in TRIR and a 60% reduction in DART rates.
“‘The 2025 Health and Safety Performance Report’ and STEP will help any contractor or supplier reinforce their commitment to the well-being of their workforce,” Greg Sizemore, vice president of health, safety, environment and workforce development at ABC, said in a press release. “If we choose to lead, if we choose to commit and if we choose to transform, together we can ensure every construction worker goes home safer, happier, healthier and more fulfilled every single day.”
McCraren Compliance offers many opportunities in safety training to help circumvent accidents. Please take a moment to visit our calendar of classes to see what we can do to help your safety measures from training to consulting.
Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication