32 l ROOFINGBC l WINTER 2018 SAFETY FOCUS 225 North Road Coquitlam, BC V3K 3V7 604.936.5643 314 Totom Ave. Kelowna, BC V1X 5C2 250.765.8018 CANADA’S HOME FOR ROOFING PRODUCTS 12510 82 Ave. Surrey, BC V3W 3E8 604.572.8088 A s WorkSafeBC enters the second year of its 2018-20 Construction High Risk Strategy (HRS), key areas of focus are prime contractors’ responsibilities and the tools, equipment and processes related to high-frequency incidents resulting in injury, such as falls from elevation and struck-by. In 2019, officers will also be assessing fall protection anchor selec- tion, installation and use in the residential wood-frame industry, to ensure they meet the requirements of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation. LOOKING AHEAD AT WORKSAFE- BC’S 2019 CONSTRUCTION HIGH RISK STRATEGY SUBMITTED BY WORKSAFEBC WORKING TOGETHER WorkSafeBC Prevention Officers regularly present to first-year apprentices at the Roofing Contractors Association of BC on workplace hazards, including: ladder safety, fall protection, asbestos exposure prevention, excava- tion safety, worker rights and responsibilities and the injury claims process. Falls from elevation remain a leading cause of serious injury and death among workers in the construction industry. From 2012 to 2017, six workers died and there were 544 accepted serious injury claims as a result of falls from heights involving roofs or scaffolds. Steep slope roofing, as well as framing and residential forming, have been identified as activ- ities with a high risk of serious injury; the injury rate for steep slope roofing in 2017 was 8.5 compared with 4.5 in general construction. The 2019 fall protection inspec- tional focus on residential wood-frame construction work sites will include assessing prime contractors’ compliance with a system or process for ensuring fall protection anchors and anchorage are selected, installed and used in accor- dance with the manufacturer instructions and Regulation. “We’re looking to see that prime contractors can demonstrate that they’ve implemented a system or process for fall protection and anchors — from start- to-finish,” says John Tuohey, Supervisor, Prevention Field Services. “It’s a matter of proper fall protection anchor selec- tion, placement, use and maintenance throughout the entire job. A lack of coor- dination from the beginning of a project, around fall protection and appropriate anchor installation, can result in exposing and re-exposing workers to additional risk during different phases of the project.” During more than 6,400 inspections of construction work sites undertaken as part of the Construction HRS in 2018, the most frequently cited Regulation was section 11.2: Obligation to use fall protection. As such, the 2019 construction HRS will continue to focus on the health and safety of B.C.’s construction workers by inspecting work performed at heights to ensure it’s done according to Regulation, and ensuring the right tool, equipment and process is being used for the job, such as guardrails, scaffolding, work platforms and mobile work platforms. A recurring issue observed at many work sites in 2018 was the removal of temporary anchors prior to project completion. Once removed, subsequent workers, who are also required to use fall protection, are unable to tie off to an anchor that previously existed. Employers