In today’s workplace, much of the support and specialty assignments are given to contractors. Edward Ballo has led sites where there were 10 to 100 contractors that worked on the site throughout the year. It is Edward’s contention that contractor safety is one of the biggest risks to a site.
Although contractors can bring a high level of expertise to support a project and maintain schedule fidelity to a business, they can also bring a different mindset and culture relative to occupational safety and health. In many cases, contractors hire employees that communicate in a language other than English. Edward has found that having a robust contractor vetting program is imperative to a site’s risk reduction.
Additionally, other steps that help with risk reduction is to provide the contractor with site orientation classes which explains to the contractor the expectations and culture of the hosting site. In many instances, different contracting companies work side by side of each other so the companies need to understand how to deal with each other effectively. This can all take place by having a hosting site liaison that assists in the integration of their work.
A best practice is to perform a safety and health job walk with the contractors prior to every shift. Notes should be taken and responsible parties need to sign off on the job walk sheet. Lessons learned from the job walks and input given during contractor inspections need to be reviewed and dealt with in a timely manner.
To reduce your risk associated with contractor safety, contact Edward Ballo with e3s Consulting.