Virginia Begins Construction Safety Initiative

A volunteer safety initiative has been created by the Associated General Contractors of Virginia and Virginia’s Occupational Safety and Health (VOSH) program, The Hampton Roads Business Journal recently reported. The BEST program, which stands for “Building Excellence in Safety, Health and Training,” is intended to persuade and identify contractor association members that use safety and health management systems to benefit construction workers.

The program includes management and employee involvement, worksite analysis, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training, with three levels of participation based on achievement. Companies that reach level three will be given an exemption from planned construction inspections by VOSH, enabling the agency to concentrate its limited compliance resources on employers with high injury and illness rates. Thirty-six workplace-related deaths in Virginia have been reported this year, with 11 of those in the construction industry.
22 www.elevatorworld.com • January 2017