istrict 57 BM-ES Ed Vance, second from right, accepts the top NACBE safety award on behalf of Local 687. Joining in the presentation are (l. to r.); NACBE Exec. Dir. John Erickson, NACBE Pres. Wendell Bell, IVP Warren Fairley, and IP Newton Jones.
Lost-time injuries drop to record low
TO PREFACE THE NACBE awards presentation at the Boilermakers Construction Division Conference held at Marco Island, Fla., March 20-25, NACBE Exec. Dir. John Erickson congratulated all locals for driving the 2010 lost-time injury rate to an all-time low. “We could not have accomplished these numbers without the participation of each and every single Boilermaker,” he said.
The 2010 lost-time injury rate dropped to 0.26, the lowest figure since NACBE began its safety index in 1990. The compensable injury rate came in at 6.86, down from 7.16 the previous year. And the OSHA recordable injury rate experienced a 13.6 percent decrease, from 2.95 to 2.74.
Local 687 (Rock Hill, S.C.), from the Southeast Section, garnered the overall NACBE Safety Award for 2010. District 57 BM-ES Ed Vance accepted the honor on behalf of the lodge.
Three other locals received safety awards for the number one spot in their Vice Presidential Sections. Accepting the awards were BM-ST Frank Hartsoe, L-45 (Richmond, Va.), Northeast; BM-ST Van Stephens, L-105 (Piketon, Ohio), Great Lakes; and BM-ST Darin McCarthy, L-500 (Portland, Ore.), Western States.
With 41 locals achieving a lost-time injury rate of 0.0 in 2010, the NACBE Safety Committee has decided to change the awards criteria, no longer using lost-time injuries as the first measure but instead going to compensable injury rates to determine the winners. Compensable injury rates include all injuries — lost-time or not.
The index covered 61 percent of total Boilermaker man-hours, with 46 contractors participating in 2010.
