On April 9, 2020, the Association of General Contractors of America (AGC) is having a national safety stand-down dedicated to educating employees on preventing the spread of COVID-19.
“Any workplace can hold a stand-down by gathering their workforce for 10-15 minutes, or more, reviewing the toolbox talk(s) prepared by AGC, or their own, and allowing time for discussion and questions,” reads AGC’s press release–of course, while following current recommendations for social distancing.
AGC has prepared a series of toolbox talks to assist with the stand-down event, available at agc.org/coronavirus. They’ve also put together a list of suggestions to prepare for a successful safety stand-down, including:
- Begin preparations as early as possible. Designate a coordinator to organize the stand-down. If you have multiple work sites, identify the team that will lead the standdown at each site. (NOTE: Contact Nazia Shah (nazia.shah@agc.org) or Kevin Cannon (kevin.cannon@agc.org) with any questions about the stand-down.)
- Think about asking your subcontractors, owner, architects, engineers, or others associated with your project to participate in the stand-down. We all need to work together to slow/stop the spread!
- Develop presentation materials or activities that will meet your needs. Decide what information will be best for your workplace and employees. The stand-down should provide information to employees about COVID-19, protective measures, and the
company’s safety policies, goals and expectations. Hands-on exercises (a worksite walkaround, equipment checks, etc.) can increase retention. (NOTE: AGC has developed a series of toolbox talks and other resources to assist with your stand-down event. Please visit www.agc.org/coronavirus to access these resources.) - Decide when to hold the stand-down and how long it will last. Decide if the standdown will take place over a break, a lunch period, or some other time.
- Promote the stand-down. Try to make it interesting to employees. Stress the importance of understanding how to protect themselves and others from COVID-19.
- Hold your stand-down. Try to make it positive and interactive. Encourage employees to talk about their experiences and make suggestions. (NOTES: Follow the current recommendations for social distancing by separating your workforce into groups of ten (10) or less people and maintaining a minimum of 6 feet between persons. If you are taking attendance, do so verbally. Do not circulate a sign-in sheet or any item/material during the discussion.)
- Follow up. If you learned something that could improve your program, guidelines, etc., consider making changes.
For companies that do participate in the stand-down, AGC asks them to share details of their stand-down on social media with the hashtag #Covid19sSafetyStandDown.