Out Loud Blog

Back on July 25, we experienced a collective sigh of relief and avoided a potential national crisis of boredom. The National Football League (NFL) lockout was finally over. Can I get an AMEN? Now we can return to a state of normalcy and move on with cheering our favorite teams, booing our rivals and updating our fantasy teams.

I look forward to hearing one of my favorite commentators, Chris Berman (ESPN), say “Rumblin…Bumblin…Stumblin,” as he describes players running over, around and through the defenders. This catch phrase works well for football players who are paid to do what they do on the playing field. Not so much in the workplace, and on our construction sites.

I recently walked a construction site where the phrase “Rumblin….Bumblin…Stumblin” would have been appropriate when describing all the potential safety hazards (slips, trips and falls, not to mention fire hazards), due to poor, and I dare say non-existent, housekeeping procedures. There were multiple piles of trash, wood, rebar, nails, concrete chunks, metal framing, wood framing and the list goes on. I felt like I was in a scene from one of those movies where mankind had been wiped out and all that was left were the lucky few who possessed the anti-virus.

When I quizzed the contractors about the policy and procedures regarding housekeeping on the job, they went on the defense and started stating all the reasons it hadn’t been taken care of. I remember using those same excuses with my mom and dad when I got in trouble for not cleaning my room or making my bed.

I showed them OSHA standard 1926.25(a) & (b), which states: During the course of construction, alteration, or repairs, form and scrap lumber with protruding nails, and all other debris, shall be kept cleared from work areas, passageways, and stairs, in and around buildings or other structures. Combustible scrap and debris shall be removed at regular intervals during the course of construction. Safe means shall be provided to facilitate such removal. Notice the term “shall” which can be defined as: indicating that something must happen or somebody is obliged to do something because of a rule or law (Encarta Dictionary).

I think we often forget that housekeeping in the workplace, or on the jobsite, is an OSHA standard and not just a suggestion. The term “housekeeping” is used to describe the proper cleaning of any project or work related debris on the job site, along with the surrounding area of the job site. The term also refers to the safe and proper storage of materials. Messy job sites can result in slips, trips and falls on same level, as well as to lower levels. These absolutely can be avoided.

I found it interesting, and somewhat shocking, when I came across some recent statistics that show a majority of general industry accidents are due to slips, trips and falls. About 15 percent of accidental deaths are caused by slips, trips and falls, second only to automobile accidents. It’s the third-leading cause of workplace injuries, and is the single most common cause of visits to the emergency room. Slips and falls lead to an estimated 104 million lost workdays a year. When all is said and done, the average cost of a slip and fall injury is about $28,000. Maybe we should start paying a lot more attention to keeping our work areas clean and clear of hazards.

Like most of you, I’m not a big fan of slipping or tripping and falling. At a minimum, it’s embarrassing, but more importantly, it causes a lot of injuries and even deaths. I’d much rather set up shop on my couch every Sunday for the next few months and watch the guys who get paid to rumble…bumble…stumble around their workplace.

Guest blogger Aaron J. Morrow, CHST, works as a project HSE manager and is a safety consultant, an OSHA 500 trainer, a Cal/OSHA 5109 trainer and a construction risk insurance specialist.

My August “The Break Room” column, Pedaling Toward Productivity, focused on the benefits of bicycle commuting. Arriving at work via bike fosters healthy habits, saves money, can increase productivity and is just plain fun. But there’s also a dangerous side to bike commuting. As with anything else, if you don’t follow the proper safety procedures, you’re putting yourself at risk.

One of my pet peeves is watching a bicyclist ride on the wrong side of the road — on the left, against traffic. This is not a safe practice. Bicyclists move quickly and can easily surprise drivers by traveling on the wrong side of the road. A driver on a cross street about to turn onto the road may not expect a biker to be approaching her against traffic. Surprised drivers who come upon a wrong-way biker may even swerve into the next lane to avoid impact. (You can read more about why biking on the wrong side of the road is dangerous here, here and here.) The bottom line is that bicyclists — and drivers — are safest when bikes are treated as another vehicle on the road. That means riding with traffic, stopping at red lights and stop signs, signaling to turn or stop, and following all other applicable traffic laws.

For some reason, this dangerous wrong-way biking practice is pervasive. I have no idea where this incorrect and unsafe habit came from. It is true that pedestrians should walk on a roadway facing traffic for their own safety, but this is not the case for bicyclists.

Biking on sidewalks is unsafe, as well. (And in most cases, it’s illegal, too.) These bicyclists pose a threat to slower-moving pedestrians, and cars turning from cross streets may not see a biker approaching on the sidewalk. I know many inexperienced cyclists feel uncomfortable biking on the street with cars, but the fact is, that’s the safest place for a bicyclist to be. (See my column for more bike commuting safety tips.)

So please, spread the word that it’s safest to bike on the road and with traffic.

Light Up For Safety

After James Nash of Mercer ORC Networks read my column in the August issue, he took a few minutes to share his own bike commuting tips:

“I enjoyed your column on biking to work. I’ve been doing it my entire life. I can think of about half a dozen reasons why it makes sense, most of them you touched on.

“I recently moved and I chose my new location partly so I could bike through the park on bike trails to work. I’ve got a 7 mile commute, which is just about the perfect length I think. I recently bought pants and a jacket so I can stay dry and bike in the rain. However, when biking in the rain you need to reduce your speed by at least 1/3 because your brakes will not work as efficiently and your tires will slip on turns. The only thing that stops me is ice. I would warn readers about that. Hidden patches of black ice in the winter in shady spots are a real hazard. A second thing I would mention is riders need to use several bright flashing lights fore and aft on their bikes and even the helmet. There are a lot of distracted drivers out there, and bright clothing alone isn’t enough, especially as we get into autumn and you are biking home in the dark. I myself came too close to striking a biker while driving on a narrow winding road, but his flashing lights warned me with enough time.”

So there you have it: Reduce your speed in the rain, avoid riding in icy conditions and be sure to use lights. If you’re riding during dusk or twilight, you might be able to see fine, and you might feel visible, but in reality you may be nearly invisible to drivers.

Biking is a fun, healthy activity, and it’s safe if cyclists take all the necessary precautions. Wear a helmet. Use lights and wear bright clothing. Ride on the right side of the road, and stay off the sidewalk. Follow traffic laws. The more bicyclists who follow the rules of the road, the safer the roads will be for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians alike.