NYC: Scaffold Safety Laws Signed |
![]() |
| Posted by Administrator (admin) on Mar 24 2009 at 5:26 PM |
| Scaffolding Accidents >> |
By Katherine Torres
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg signed three bills that were written to
enhance safety for suspended scaffold workers as directed by the Suspended Scaffold
Worker Safety Task Force.
The bills require all suspended scaffolds – the type that hang from the roofs
of tall buildings by ropes or other means, not the ones anchored on the ground
– to be inspected daily and that a record of the inspection at the job site be
made available to New York City Department of Buildings personnel.
Also, they require any person using or installing a suspended scaffold hung from
a C-hook or outrigger beam to notify the Buildings Department at least 24 but
no more than 48 hours prior to the start of their use or installation. If there
is a first violation, a penalty of $500 will be imposed, and a second violation
would cost an employer $1,250.
In addition, the bills authorize the Buildings Department to issue a stop-work
order, effective for a 2-day minimum period, if employers don't notify the department
if the rigger is unlicensed, if the workers lack certificates of fitness or if
the rigger has not filed proper insurance or bonding documents.
An increased penalty schedule also has been set for the violations: $1,500
to $2,500 for not having a certificate of fitness, and $1,250 to $2,500 for not
having a licensed rigger on site or lacking insurance.
All subsequent violations will range between $2,500 and $15,000, Bloomberg stated.
“As construction across the five boroughs has boomed over the past 5 years,
unfortunately so has the number of scaffold accidents,” Bloomberg said. “Every
construction-related injury or death is a tragedy, and the implementation of the
task force recommendations and adoption of these bills will help minimize such
tragedies by enhancing inspections, ensuring proper installation techniques and
increasing penalties.”
According to Bloomberg, of the 29 construction deaths in 2006, 20 of those
accidents involved suspended scaffolding. Of those 20 accidents, six workers were
killed and five were injured.
Back
|
15 Passenger Van Rollover
