Construction Safety Stand Down

On August 11th – We are Standing Down!

Register Your Organization for the 2023 Construction Safety Stand Down!

The 6th annual Construction Safety Stand Down will  held on August 11th, 2023.  Won’t you please take a few minutes to stand down and talk about hazards and the potential for serious injuries in your workplace?

While we have made great strides in reducing lost time injuries in Newfoundland and Labrador however serious injuries are decreasing at a much slower rate.
In fact, from 2018-2022:

  • There were 1,281 serious injury claims in the province and 145 fatalities (including deaths from occupational disease).
  • The cost of serious injury claims were approximately $117.9M, an increase of 3% from 2018.
  • 16.4% of serious claims were attributable to the construction industry.

The safety stand-down is an opportunity for management to engage directly with workers, discuss the job activities and the hazards associated with them, and determine if any changes can be made to improve their health and safety. It also demonstrates the company’s commitment to ensuring everyone works in a safe manner. Companies can participate by taking a short break from their work activities to conduct a toolbox meeting or another safety related activity focused on serious injury and fatality prevention.

Click for more information on serious injuries.

Safety Stand Down?

A safety stand-down is a voluntary event where employers speak directly to workers about safety.  All workplaces can hold a safety stand-down by taking a break to focus on specific hazards that workers may encounter while working.  This focus on safety allows open communication between management and workers to discuss hazards, controls, and specific company policies and procedures. A safety stand-down is applicable to all industries as everyone faces hazards at their workplace.

A safety stand-down allows workers to stop their task, reassess the job activities and the hazards associated with them, and determine if any changes can be made to improve their health and safety.  It also demonstrates the company’s commitment to ensuring everyone works in a safe manner.

Companies participate by taking a break from their work activities and conducting a toolbox meeting, or other safety-related activity aimed at raising awareness about serious injury prevention (SIP) in the workplace.

  1. Start Early.  Designate a date, time, and a person(s) to coordinate the stand-down. It could be August 11th or any other date that week, which suits your needs.
  2. Consider your topic.
  3. Develop the presentation or activity planned. Decide what information you want to convey to your workforce and how it will be communicated. Hands-on activities will increase participation and retention of information.
  4. Promote the stand-down.  Make workers, supervisors, sub-contractors, etc. aware of the stand-down and the purpose. A Safety Stand-Down poster can be found below.
  5. Hold your stand-down.  Try to make it positive and interactive.  Encourage workers to share their experiences and their suggestions for improvements.
  6. Follow-up. Reflect on the discussion from the workforce and consider making changes to your safety program based on their input, if possible.
Register Your Organization for the 2023 Construction Safety Stand Down!

Construction Safety Stand Down Resources

High Risk Info Sheets

High risk work activities place workers at an increased risk for serious injuries, particularly when hazard controls are are absent, ineffective, or not being complied with.  In the construction industry many high risk work activities take place on a daily basis.  Check out our general information sheets on common high risk construction activities.

Toolbox Talks

The NLCSA has available a full suite of toolbox talks many of which are focused on high-risk activities. You can view these in the resource section of this website, or search below.

TitleFile TypeLink
15 Steps a Supervisor Can Take to Prevent Fallswww
15 Steps Supervisors Can Take to Prevent Fallspdf
3 Point Contact: Vehicles and Equipmentpdf
3-point Contact on Ladderspdf
8 Tips for Avoiding Falsified Safety Documentationpdf
Aerial Work Platformswww
Asbestos – Part 1pdf
Asbestos – Part 2pdf
Back Care – Basic Liftingpdf
Back Care – Lift Smartlypdf
Back Care – Liftingpdf
Back Care – Materialspdf
Back Care – Materials 2pdf
Carbon Monoxidepdf
Circular Sawspdf
Cold Weather Ergonomicspdf
Combustible Materialspdf
Conducing a Workplace Inspectionwww
Construction Season Start-up Tipspdf
Control Zones for Flat Roofspdf
COR® Audit Tipspdf
Defensive Drivingpdf
Distracted Drivingpdf
Documenting First Aid Incidentspdf
Donning a Fall Protection Harnesspdf
Donning a Full Body Harnesswww
Driver Fatiguepdf
Driving Through Construction Zonespdf
Early and Safe Return to Work – Duty to Co-operate /Benefitspdf
Emergency Preparedness for Road Travelpdf
Extension Ladderspdf
Eye Protectionpdf
Fall Protectionpdf
Fall Protection – Control Zones for Flat Roofswww
Fall Protection – Emergency Preparednesswww
Fall Protection – Floor and Roof Openingspdf
Fall Protection – Generalwww
Fall Protection & Working at Heights in Residential Constructionwww
Fall Protection Equipment – Anchorage Point & Installationpdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Anchorage Pointswww
Fall Protection Equipment – Approvals and Inspectionspdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Guard Railspdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Inspecting a Harnesspdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Lanyardswww
Fall Protection Equipment – Lanyards and Classespdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Rope Grabspdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Self Retracting Devicespdf
Fall Protection Equipment – Self-Retractable Deviceswww
Fall Protection for Sloped Roofswww
Fall Protection for Woking on a Sloped Roofpdf
Fall Protection: Basic Typespdf
Fall Protection: Formwork Leading Edgepdf
Falling Objectspdf
Fatigue Awarenesspdf
Find Your Footing: Ground Conditionspdf
Finding Your Footing – Ground Conditionswww
Fire Prevention and Controlpdf
General Emergency Preparednesspdf
Giving a Safety Talk – Tipswww
Habits in the Workplacepdf
Hand Protectionpdf
Hand Safetypdf
Hazard Reassessment Information Sheetpdf
Hazards and Hazard Reportingpdf
Hearing Protectionpdf
Hierarchy of Fall Protectionpdf
Hierarchy of Fall Protectionwww
Housekeepingpdf
Hurricane Prepareness for Construction Sitespdf
Improving Temporary Stairs and Handrailspdf
Infectious Disease Preventionpdf
Inspecting a Full Body Harnesswww
Inspecting an Aerial Work Platformwww
Leg Injuriespdf
Lighting Conditionspdf
Lock Out Tag Outpdf
Lyme Disease and Blacklegged/Deer Tickspdf
Mind On Safetypdf
Mould and Mildewpdf
Mounting & Dismounting Excavatorspdf
MSDs – Controlspdf
MSDs – Risk Factorspdf
MSDs – Weldingpdf
MSDs – Wholebody Vibrationpdf
MSI Hazards & Controls for Heavy Civil Workpdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Boilermakerspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Carpentry Finishingpdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Concrete Floors and Drainspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Drywallpdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Drywallerspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Electricianspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for General Labourerspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Insulatorspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Painters and Decoratorspdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Pipe Tradespdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Plumbingpdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Refrigeration and Air Conditioningpdf
MSI Hazards and Controls for Rodworkerspdf
Musculoskeletal Injury Controlspdf
Nail Gunspdf
Near Miss Accident Theorypdf
Needle Stick and Sharp Object Injuriespdf
NL Construction MSI Statspdf
OH&S Advisory from ServiceNL re Cannabis and the Workplacepdf
Powder-Actuated Toolspdf
Presenteeismpdf
Preventing Back Injuriespdf
Preventing Slips and Fallspdf
Preventing Slips and Fallswww
Push/Pull Safetypdf
Rags and Spontaneous Combustionpdf
Rebar Impalement Hazardspdf
Removing Disposable Mask & Glovespdf
Removing Snow from Structurespdf
Respectful Workplacespdf
Respiratory Protectionpdf
Responsibilitiespdf
Safe Work Practices and Safe Job Procedurespdf
Safety – Bring it Homepdf
Safety Culturepdf
Safety Matters: Head Injuries and Concussionspdf
Safety Talk Tipspdf
Safety Talk: Workplace Bullying and Harassmentpdf
Sample Working at Height Plandoc
Sample Working at Height Rescue Proceduresdoc
Scaffold Safetypdf
Scaffold Safetywww
Scaffoldng Safetypdf
Seasonal Hazards – Springpdf
ServiceNL/WorkplaceNL Scaffold Safety Guide – January 2018pdf
Shovelling & Diggingpdf
Silica Dust Exposurepdf
Situational Awarenesspdf
Slip and Fall Hazards for Truck Driverspdf
Step Ladderspdf
Stretching Exercisespdf
Tarping Loadspdf
Temporary Heaterspdf
Temporary Lightingpdf
Temporary Stairs and Handrailswww
Ticks (Lyme Disease, Ticks and their Removal)pdf
Traffic Controlpdf
Trees and Power Linespdf
Trees and Power Lines Fact Sheetpdf
Trenching and Excavation Safetypdf
Welder’s Flash Part 1pdf
Welder’s Flash Part 2pdf
WHMIS 2015 GHS Fact Sheetpdf
Wildlife and Constructionpdf
Wind Hazardspdf
Winter Safety Hazardspdf
Worker’s Rightspdf
Working at Heights – Site Specific Trainingpdf
Working in a Confined Spacepdf
Working in Extreme Cold – Frostbite & Hypothermiapdf
Working Near Power Lines: Construction, Maintenance & Vegetation Brochurepdf
Working Near/Over Waterpdf
Workplace Complacencypdf
Workplace Harassmentpdf
Workplace Inspectionspdf
Workplace Violence Risk Assessment – Employee Questionnairepdf
WorkplaceNL MSIP Week 2018 Tip 1: Planning Your Work Daypdf
WorkplaceNL MSIP Week 2018 Tip 2: Making the Commitmentpdf
WorkplaceNL MSIP Week 2018 Tip 3: Pain and Discomfortpdf
WorkplaceNL MSIP Week 2018 Tip 4: Stresspdf
WorkplaceNL MSIP Week 2018 Tip 5: Fatiguepdf

Serious Injury Podcast

Serious Injury Webinar – Pre-Recorded by WorkplaceNL

Register Your Organization Now!

Share Your Story with Us

  • Register your event with the NLCSA and provide feedback about your stand-down.
  • Share your story on social media with the hashtag: #nlstanddown4safety.

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