Safety stand down is used to describe a variety of activities where normal work is paused and the entire site focuses on a particular safety issue.
National Falls Campaign adopted the use of the stand-down to draw attention to fall hazards. They define Safety stand down as a voluntary event where the employer talk directly to the employee about Fall Hazards and reinforcing the importance of Fall Prevention.
A stand down does not have to be an overly organized affair and does not need to be precipitated by a near miss or other perceived hazard.
The first National Safety Stand-Down organized by to prevent falls organized by National Falls Campaign was held in June 2014, and reached an estimated 1 million workers. The second Stand-Down was held in May 2015 and reached over 1.5 million workers!
In 2018, the stand down was held in May 7th – 11th, 2018 and in 2019 it was held in May 6th – 10th, 2019.
Who Can Participate in Safety stand-down
Anyone who wants to prevent hazards in the workplace can participate in the Stand-Down. In past years, participants included commercial construction companies of all sizes, residential construction contractors, sub- and independent contractors, highway construction companies, general industry employers, the U.S. Military, other government participants, unions, employer’s trade associations, institutes, employee interest organizations, and safety equipment manufacturers.
