The following article was originally published by the Centered on Safety website. Reprinted with permission.
In the United States, women represent less than 9 percent of construction workers, according to 2014 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and only 1.3 percent are working as operating engineers or other construction equipment operators. Other countries report similar statistics. There are a variety of reasons women don’t consider construction as a career path.
Just because the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed a delay to mandatory operator certification, doesn’t mean it’s sure to happen. Employers and operators should take notice of recent activity in Washington, D.C.We learned last week about a different regulation that was in a similar situation to 1926.1400 Cranes and Derricks in Construction. On August 7, OSHA withdrew a proposed rule to amend the On-Site Consultation Program.Although this has nothing to do with cranes and derricks, the parallels between the two rules and the actions taken by the Federal Agency are worth noting.
August 16, 2013
