Disciplining safety violations | Safe SolutionsLeslie Kazmierowski
System Roofing, a union company that installs single-ply roof
systems, has a written safety program with specific safety rules.
Each spring, the owner, Steve, and his three foremen have a
safety-awareness meeting for the work force. Periodically, Steve
also provides safety-awareness information in employees' paycheck
envelopes.
New employees, who are acquired from the local union, must
complete the union-sponsored apprenticeship program and work with a
foreman in a mentoring program for six months. Steve thought these
practices created a safety-awareness culture at System Roofing.
One winter, Mark was the foreman on an industrial job with a
three-person crew. The crew noted the surface of the roof was
frosted and slippery. Mark informed his crew to stay off the roof
until he returned from the shop with a torch to melt the frost.
When Mark left, two crew members went on the roof against Mark's
instructions; they slid off the 14-foot- (4-m-) high roof. The
other crew member called 911, and by the time Mark returned, two
ambulances had arrived. Mark was surprised the workers had
disobeyed his instructions because they had been adequately trained
and knew about...
To read the article in its entirety, please log in or register (registration is free).
Log in or register for FREE access to this article and other Professional Roofing online content.