Safety As a Community
Friday, November 11, 2011 at 9:16AM Published in the July/August issue of Building Indiana as "The Last Word"
Written by Scott Grimes, Executive Director of MICCS
Would you get in a car and not wear a seat belt? Would you climb on the nearest object instead of using a sturdy step ladder to reach something? Would you work off of a ten-story building with a frayed fall arrest harness? Sometimes it is easier or quicker to forego the proper precautions, but unfortunately, these bad choices can lead to an injury, or possibly even worse.
Nearly 19 years ago, a community was developed that had a strong desire to provide standards and education to help employers battle these bad choices employees make. Through that formation, Indiana has seen a dramatic change in construction and facility maintenance safety. One major reason for this change is the Metro Indianapolis Coalition for Construction Safety’s (MICCS). Many lives have been saved and injuries have been prevented as the coalition strives to meet its mission – to eliminate construction and facilities maintenance jobsite injuries and illnesses with the ultimate objective of returning construction and maintenance workers home to their families, friends, and communities free from harm.
According to Wikipedia, a coalition is a pact or treaty among individuals or groups, during which they cooperate in joint action, each in their own self-interest, joining forces together for a common cause. The founders of MICCS were very conscientious in making the organization a coalition so that there was a balance of all industry segments. That gives the ability for all stakeholders to be represented in the process of advancing construction and facility maintenance safety.
In the early years, despite the balance, MICCS was not an entirely popular organization. It made people change the way they had always done business, which included a lack of understanding and, possibly, regard for employee safety. Through the hard work of many volunteer and staff hours, the organization has seen a great change in that perspective; a positive change that shows a respect for MICCS and a respect for employee safety. It is not recognized across the board, but it is significant. Think of the old Empire State Building pictures with construction workers eating their lunch 1,000 feet in the air with their legs dangling off the steel beams while a guy is pictured in the background doing a balancing act on one of the beams. In the early 1990’s, we weren’t quite that bad, but had plenty of room for improvement.
As MICCS exists today, there are 200,000 worker records within the MICCS Substance Abuse Program. Hundreds show up to the annual MICCS Awards banquet that recognizes companies and individuals for their safety achievements. The MICCS Certification Program, a safety prequalification tool that also helps to enhance and guide company safety programs, has grown to over 1,000 contractors, many of them reaching high levels of achievement within the program. MICCS has partnered with the Indiana Department of Labor and now has a close working relationship with free-flowing communication and a constructive agreement for members. MICCS is now producing video tool box talks and other resources for companies. MICCS has even started a foundation that provides money to families of member companies if an unfortunate event does occur on a jobsite.
These are only some of the ways MICCS is working to improve safety, but the point is that none of it would have been possible without MICCS being set up as a coalition…a community coming together for the common good of everyone. Union companies sit in the same room with merit shop companies and are able to work together. Fierce competitors sit in the same room and partner on the very programs previously mentioned. The modus operandi for MICCS members is that when you walk through the door to a MICCS function, everything stays outside that door except the concern for employee safety.
What does this teach us?
Each and every jobsite should work in the same manner. From the owner, to the GC, to the third tier subcontractor, everyone should be involved in the planning and execution of a safety program. It is not the sole responsibility of one entity on a site – they may demand certain things, but it is up to each and every person to set and maintain a safe environment. It has been proven. MICCS is the case study. Communities can come together and make a huge difference if everyone is involved in the process. MICCS has much more to do and will continue to work towards achieving zero injuries – TOGETHER!
Reader Comments (2)
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- Shelena
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