To further our mission to make our industry safer, NWRA hosts three different Safety Stand Downs annually. Each week-long Safety Stand Down campaign focuses on a separate safety topic. NWRA provides participating companies from throughout the industry with valuable resources to distribute and use to train employees on that campaign topic. NWRA also works with other organizations to raise awareness throughout the industry about these safety issues during the campaign.
2018 Safety Stand Down - Water. Rest. Shade
The purpose of NWRA’s Water. Rest. Shade. - Safety Stand Down is to join forces with OSHA, member companies, and other industry partners to raise awareness, prevent, and teach waste and recycling industry employers and workers about the dangers of working outside in hot weather and to provide valuable resources to address the Heat Illness prevention and Recovery.
In 2014 alone, 2,630 workers suffered from heat illness and 18 died from heat stroke and related causes on the job. 1,160 cases (56%) occurred in the services providing industries. The Waste and Recycling industry falls into this sector and is classified as one of OSHA’s “High Hazard Industries”. Waste and Recycling workers working in hot weather are at risk. Employees must be made aware of the risk. Employers must acclimatize workers, provide safe working conditions, and assure that workers go home to their families as healthy as they came to work.
Register here to pledge to take part in the week-long Stand Down for safety.
This week-long training and awareness effort is focused around reducing accidents, fatalities and injuries related to truck backing incidents which represents a common challenge for the industry. Fatalities caused by backing vehicles continue to be a leading cause of preventable deaths for waste & recycling workers, accounting for nearly 30% of industry worker fatalities in 2015. NHTSA’s extensive research study of 10,092 fatalities of truck crashes involving cars. The study showed that large trucks were at-fault for 87 of 89 backing crash fatalities (98%) involving cars.
The waste and recycling industry involves outdoor work in all weather conditions and is physically demanding and fatiguing. The purpose of NWRA’s Water. Rest. Shade. - Safety Stand Down is to raise awareness, prevent, and teach waste and recycling industry employers and workers about managing heat illness, including: acclimatization, scheduling, hydration, nutrition, fatigue management, and recovery. NWRA will provide valuable resources to manage these concerns. NWRA’s campaign mirrors OSHA’s “Water. Rest. Shade.” Heat Illness Prevention Campaign, begun in 2011, which has reached more than 10.7 million people. Additionally, OSHA has classified the Waste and Recycling as one of their “High Hazard Industries”. Each year, heat illness affects thousands of workers…..and heat can kill. In 2014 alone, 18 workers in this country died from heat exposure. Waste and recycling workers working in hot weather are at risk. Employees must be made aware of the risk. Employers must acclimatize workers, provide safe working conditions, and assure that workers go home to their families as healthy as they came to work.
Please join NWRA and our partners the week of June 4-8, 2018 in creating a Safer, Smarter, Stronger waste & recycling industry. Heat illnesses deaths are preventable.
Conducting a risk assessment at job sites and review safety policies and procedures for backing.
Review company policies, procedures, consider enhancements, and then training employees on any changes.
Posting Stand Down materials to the company website, in employee meeting rooms and on social media sites.
Using a series of five editions of Safety Monday to share with employees during the event
Register here to pledge to take part in the week-long Stand Down for safety. Participants will receive a toolkit of resources for the Stand Down upon registration. There will also be a question of the day and safety videos from NWRA’s Safety Director Anthony Hargis posted on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
Events
Question of The Day: Monday-Friday 9:30 AM EST, click here for instructions. Find us on Twitter and Facebook by typing our handle @wasterecycling.
August means the end of summer and the beginning of a new school year. This time of year, you’ll see more buses and cars on the roadways including parents driving their children to school to teachers and college students heading in to their classes.
Waste and recycling collection workers will be sharing the roadways with these neighbors and will be taking added safety precautions to protect students, teachers and families from harm. Historically, back to school time also means that school zone accidents increase, significantly. NWRA, the Waste and Recycling industry, and our members realize that this increases the chances for collisions, injuries and fatalities.
Approximately 100 children in the United States are killed every year while walking to or from school and another 25,000 children sustain injuries as a result of school zone accidents. Some kids will be walking, riding their bikes or riding a bus to school for the first time in 2016.
NWRA’s Back to School Safety Stand Down will provide information and guidance material to address driver distractions, benchmarked successful practices and operations planning for waste and recycling collectors to improve safety in school zones and bus stops around them. Often times, kids aren’t as well versed about school zone and bus stop safety and traffic laws as adults are. The fact is many adults aren’t clear either. NWRA’s Stand Down will partner with other safety organizations that communicate to youth groups, pedestrians, employers and drivers of all ages to help promote and communicate a shared commitment to safety on the roadways and around school zones and bus stops to protect the communities we serve.
Twitter Chat Event: Wednesday, August 2 at 2pm EST (@wasterecycling.org) Click Here to view Twitter Chat Click Here for instructions on how to participate
Family Safety Planning – Hand out and instruct employees to discuss this material with their families and walk or bike the route to school with their children.
The purpose of NWRA’s Safety Stand Down on Water. Rest. Shade. is to join forces with OSHA, member companies, and other industry partners to raise awareness, prevent, and teach waste and recycling industry employers and workers about the dangers of working outside in hot weather and to provide valuable resources to address the heat illness prevention and recovery. In 2014 alone, 2,630 workers suffered from heat illness and 18 died from heat stroke and related causes on the job. 1,160 cases (56%) occurred in services providing industries. The waste and recycling industry falls into this sector and is classified as one of OSHA’s “High Hazard Industries.” Waste and recycling workers working in hot weather are at risk. Employees must be made aware of the risk. Employers must acclimatize workers, provide safe working conditions, and assure that workers go home to their families as healthy as they came to work. Please join NWRA and our partners the week of April 24-28, 2017 in creating a Safer, Smarter, Stronger waste & recycling industry. Heat illnesses deaths are preventable. Please join NWRA and our partners the week of April 24-28, 2017 in creating a Safer, Smarter, Stronger waste & recycling industry. Heat illnesses deaths are preventable.
This week-long training and awareness effort is focused around reducing accidents, fatalities and injuries related to truck backing incidents which represents a common challenge for the industry. Fatalities caused by backing vehicles continue to be a leading cause of preventable deaths for waste & recycling workers, accounting for nearly 30% of industry worker fatalities in 2015. NHTSA’s extensive research study of 10,092 fatalities of truck crashes involving cars. The study showed that large trucks were at-fault for 87 of 89 backing crash fatalities (98%) involving cars.
Please join NWRA and our partners the week of January 23 – 27, 2017 in creating a Safer, Smarter, Stronger waste & recycling industry. Members of the waste and recycling industry are asked to join in NWRA’s commitment toward significantly improving safety for the waste and recycling industry by taking part in this effort.
Participation in the stand down means that (name of company) has joined with waste and recycling companies across the country to commit to:
1. Conducting a risk assessment at job sites and review safety policies and procedures for backing.
2. Review company policies, procedures, consider enhancements, and then training employees on any changes.
3. Posting Stand Down materials to the company website, in employee meeting rooms and on social media sites.
4. Using a series of five editions of Safety Monday to share with employees during the event
Register here to pledge to take part in the week-long Stand Down for safety. Participants will receive a toolkit of resources for the Stand Down upon registration.
Please note that if you participates in any of the 2016 Safety Stand Downs, you will automatically be enrolled in this 2017 Stand Down on backing. If you choose not to participate, please email ahargis@wasterecycling.org to be removed from the registrants list.
Schedule:
Tuesday 1PM EST - Follow along with @wasterecycling for a Twitter chat using #StandforSafety
Wednesday 3PM EST - Facebook Live event
Thursday 2PM EST - National Call-In
Water. Rest. Shade.
The purpose of the Water. Rest. Shade. NWRA Safety Stand Down is to raise awareness, prevent, and teach waste and recycling industry workers and employers about the dangers of working in hot weather and provide valuable resources to address these concerns.
In 2014, 2,070 injury and illness cases with lost work days involved exposure to environmental heat. 1,160 cases (56%) occurred in the services providing industries. The Waste and Recycling industry falls into this sector. Waste and recycling workers working in hot weather are at risk. Employers must provide safe working conditions and employees must be made aware of the risk. That is the law.
Thanks to all of the companies who made the Water. Rest. Shade Safety Stand Down a success. If you would like to share your recap of the stand down please email it to Anothony Hargis ahargis@wasterecycling.org.
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