Safety above division!
As one of the members and founders of the Agreement for Safety in the Construction Industry, Mostostal Warszawa is again actively involved in organising the nationwide social event "Safety Week at Polish Construction Sites". This year's educational session will be held between on May 18-24. During the event, Poland's 10 largest general contractors will join forces to improve safety and eliminate fatalities at national construction sites.
Each year, there are approx. 100 fatal incidents at Polish construction sites, which means one casualty every 4 days. To prevent this, the largest national construction companies have been working jointly under the "Agreement for Safety in the Construction Industry" since 2010.
The association's operations are focused not only on a group of signatories employing over 20,000 employees and completing several thousands of contracts across Poland, but they also focus on a group of subcontractors comprising 70% of the staff employed to complete a given project. The association's aim is to completely eliminate fatal accidents at Polish construction sites. To achieve this objective, the members of the association have developed a number of projects that introduce OHS-related system solutions at construction sites across Poland. National Safety Week is one of the association's initiatives. It is the only such large-scale OHS-related educational project in Poland. The events organised during the Safety Week at approx. 358 units and construction sites are attended by some 40,000 employees each year.
“Cyclical analysis shows that – compared to other activities – the construction sector features the largest number of serious and fatal incidents at work. At Mostostal Warszawa, there is no consent for construction site accidents – human life is of the highest value and there are no higher priorities for us than protecting and caring for what is most precious to each of us. Safeguarding the working environment is of superior value to us, a value that is priceless in terms of being responsible for another human being. As a company with a 70-year long tradition in the Polish construction market, let us say it out loud: there is no turning back from uniform, clear and enforceable OHS rules – this is an unconditional principle exercised in our company," says Jacek Szymanek, Member of the Management Board at Mostostal Warszawa.
Safety – a shared concern
The second edition of the Safety Week will be held under the slogan Safety – a shared concern, which should be interpreted in three ways. Firstly, the ten largest general contractors in Poland will jointly launch educational events at construction sites nationwide. The slogan also refers to the contractor-subcontractor relationship where, thanks to uniform safety principles agreed upon, both internal workers and external companies have identical OHS standards. The third aspect relates to the fact that safety depends on units – compliance with OHS principles by each employee, without exceptions, is the only way to ensure safety for the entire team.
“Through this campaign, which is run as part of our responsible business strategy, we want to show the community that safety is a key value and imperative to the leaders of this sector. For the second year, during Safety Week at Mostostal Warszawa construction sites, we strive to raise employees’ and subcontractors’ awareness and educate them about OHS principles," adds Mariusz Piątkowski, OHS Manager at Mostostal Warszawa.
Book of Ideas
Multiple activities were planned for this year's Safety Week at the construction sites of association members across Poland. A detailed description of the activities is provided in the Book of Ideas – a set of 19 proposals created in a joint effort by association members. One of the more interesting ideas is the Responsibility Mirror, which, located at a construction site, draws attention to the person ultimately responsible for safety at work. An employee glancing at the mirror can see his reflection with the following inscription: "This is the person responsible for one's own safety." In addition, construction sites will host events including fire safety exercises, OHS-oriented training sessions, and activities for children and technical school students. Moreover, construction site evacuation, power-tool operation workshops and first-aid training sessions will also be held.
On a large scale!
When it comes to the scale of the project, the numbers speak for themselves – the organisers forecast that during the 2nd edition of Safety Week, the employee attendance and involvement rate will outgrow last year's edition when activities held at the construction sites of the signatories of the association were attended by more than 40,000 employees.