Background:

The Penn-Del-Jersey National Electrical Contractors Association, Inc. (PDJNECA) - International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Union - OSHA Construction Industry Safety Partnership was formed in November 2004 between PDJNECA, IBEW, and OSHA's Region III Area Office. The Partnership was developed to increase communication within the electrical contracting industry, decrease injury and illness rates and reduce workers compensation costs, and implement effective safety and health management systems.

Success Impact:

Safety and Health Training and Injury and Illness Rates

The Partnership worked together to develop exemplary training programs that benefit the industry, its workers, and the general public. Through the Partnership, electrical safety training was offered to all participants – not only at the NECA training center but onsite for workers' convenience. Onsite safety training sessions were often attended by non-participant companies as well as participants. The Partnership's increased training efforts created such a buzz in the industrial and commercial community that many larger companies implemented new requirements that included contractors having written safety and health management systems in place and documentation of formal safety and health training.

Over the course of the Partnership, the cumulative Total Case Incident Rate (TCIR) and Days Away, Restricted and Transferred (DART) rate were both below the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) national average for that year.

Partnership Objectives:

The Partnership was developed to achieve meaningful improvements in worker safety within the electrical contracting industry through improved communication, to reduce injury and illness rates for workers, and to implement effective safety and health management systems. A key element of the Partnership was to increase accessibility to safety and health training resulting in increased awareness for both employees and contractors.

• Origin: Region III, Philadelphia Area Office
• Partners: PDJNECA, IBEW, Carr and Duff, Inc., Vasoli Electric Co., J.P. Rainey and Co., Shelly Electric Co., TriTech Systems, Inc., Robert Ford Electric Co., Pagoda Electric, Inc., Charles MacDonald Electric, Inc., Academy Electric Construction, Inc., J.W. Carrigan, Inc.
• Partnership Signed: November 2004
• Industry: Construction (NAICS Code 238210, SIC Code 1731)
• Employees: 500
• Employers: 10
• Source and Date: James Touey, Region III, Philadelphia Area Office / February 2008