NYC Deadline Approaching Regarding OSHA Training Requirement

Starting July 1, 2009, all workers at major building projects in New York City are required to complete a 10-hour course in construction industry safety and health approved by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Local Law 41 of 2008 requires the site safety plans of major buildings must include a statement that all workers have completed this course.

Angelo Garcia, III joins Voice America's New Green Talk Network

Future Environment Designs is proud to announce that Angelo Garcia, III has joined Voice America's new Green Talk Network hosting the internet radio talk show "Keeping Your Family Safe," click on the title to go to the network's website. The "Keeping Your Family Safe" internet radio program will provide the homeowner with the knowledge they need to help them protect their family from the various environmental and safety hazards encountered doing home improvements or other work around the home. "Keeping Your Family Safe" will discuss, with various guests, typical home improvement hazards such as asbestos, lead, PCBs, mold, formaldehyde, and pesticides. Our radio program will also discuss proper use of safety equipment, recognizing a good environmental contractor/consultant, green cleaning, and water testing. Our first show is scheduled for Monday, January 5, 2008 at 2 PM Eastern Time. In our first show we will interview Dr. Eileen Franko of the New York State Department of Health regarding statistics showing lead poisoning of children from home improvements done by the parents unaware of lead paint in the home. Join us on Mondays starting on January 5, 2008 at 2 PM Eastern Time to learn more.

NYC Building Department Changes Go Into Effect in 2009

New York City Building Department (NYC DOB) is making many changes in the way building sites are run in 2009. The changes are designed to increase safety and affect how business is done with the NYC DOB. Examples of these changes include:

• A concrete safety manager must be designated on all "major buildings" during the concrete portion of the project to promote safer concrete operations.


• All high-rise construction sites, will require a licensed site safety manager to peform inspections to ensure construction sites are properly maintained. The site safey manager shall maintain two new site safety logs (maintenance and permit logs) documenting the inspections.


• The new training requirements under Local Law 41 of 2008 requiring all workers, at "major buildings," to complete a 10 Hour course in construction safety approved by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was extended to July 1, 2009. (The class must have been taken within the past 5 years).

Click on the title for the link to the NYC DOB website for more information.

OSHA Announces Proactive Measures to Reduce NYC Construction Fatalities

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced on June 23, 2008 proactive measures to combat the recent high fatality rate in New York City. OSHA is temporarily assigning a dozen additional compliance officers to conduct proactive inspections of high-rise construction sites, cranes, and other places where fatalities and serious accidents have been occurring. Ongoing inspections will also continue based on existing local emphasis programs or as a result of complaints, referrals or accidents.

Since May, 2008, OSHA has also been sending copies of violation citations issued to employers on city construction sites to the employer's insurance or worker's compensation carriers, and to construction project owners and developers in order to raise awareness of occupational hazards found on city jobsites. Citations involving training violations at union sites will be sent to the unions representing the workers and to their training funds.

220-H Requirements Posted

New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) has issued the requirements for statue 220-H compliance (see the link above). Statue 220-H requires that every worker working on public work of $250,000 or more shall have taken the ten hour Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) construction safety training course. NYSDOL will enforce this statue by requiring all contractors and subcontractors to submit copies of the OSHA ten hour card or training roster with the first certified payroll submitted to the contracting agency and on each succeeding payroll where any new or additional employee is first listed. This should clarify who needs to take the OSHA ten hour course. All workers who will be listed on the certified payroll have to take the OSHA ten hour course.

We have several courses on the schedule. We also can set-up a class At Your Convenience with 4 or more workers, so give us a call.

PACNY - 12th Annual Environmental Conference

One of the more interesting conferences I have attended is the annual Environmental Conference held by the Professional Abatement Contractors of New York (PACNY - http://www.pacny.org/). This year is PACNY's 12th Annual Environmental Conference and as usual the line-up of speakers is impressive. The conference is held at the Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York on February 28 & 29, 2008. Featured presenters include Chris Alonge, PE of NYS Department of Labor (writer of the current Industrial Code Rule 56 (the asbestos regulations), Maureen Cox also of NYS Department of Labor (her division enforces the asbestos regulations), David Heckman from OSHA, discussing OSHA Cooperative programs, and Carl Thurnau, PE of NYS Education Department, discussing PCBs and the NYSED. In addition, to presenters the conference also features an exhibitor's area where you can meet the suppliers and manufacturers of abatement and safety equipment. Turning Stone Resort and Casino (http://www.turningstone.com/) is an interesting place to have the conference. A little out of the way for us downstaters but worth the drive (almost 5 hours from Syosset, New York) or you can fly into Syracuse and then drive to Verona (approximately 40 minutes). Turning Stone Resort (the Oneida Indian Nation runs this resort and casino) has several excellant dining areas, has several golf courses, has your typical gaming areas, and entertainment (Country singer Toby Keith is playing there on March 1). But the real reason to go is the Environmental Conference, which is probably the best conference that addresses New York State environmental and safety issues. The presenters are industry professionals or regulators that are deeply involved in the New York State abatement industry. I hope to see you there.

NYS Labor Law 220-H

New York State passed Labor Law 220-H this past summer. This law will go into effect on July 18, 2008 and require all laborers, workers, and mechanics on a public work site show certification that they took a minimum of a 10-hour OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) Construction Safety Course. OSHA issues the certification cards after successfully completing the course. Future Environment Designs offers the OSHA 10-hour Construction Safety Course in Syosset or at your convenience and then applies to OSHA for the certification cards. The 10-hour course is actually a two-day course, because 10 hours is the total contact time for the course. That means breaks are not included in the 10 hours. Once you add appropriate breaks (lunch, coffee, etc.) into the time that brings the class to approximately 12 hours which is two days of training 6 hours each day.
The regulation applies to all contracts for state or municipality work totaling $250,000 or more for construction, reconstruction, repair or maintenance. It covers all workers on the job, employed either by the contractor, sub-contractor or other person(s) doing or contracting to do the whole or a part of the work contemplated by the contract. The training must be completed before the workers arrive at the job site. The regulation will be enforced by the New York State Department of Labor.
Future Environment Designs will add this class to our schedule to meet the anticipated demand for the class.