Contractor Safety – Are You Responsible When They’re on Site?

Do You Know Who is Accountable for Your Contractors?

Dealing with contractors on site who don’t know of, or don’t abide by, your safety procedures can be hazardous. Workers in the construction and engineering industry face many hazards daily, as construction sites are one of the most dangerous places to work. This is why it is so important that everyone on site understands and follows safety procedures. With safety legislation and compliance processes in place for your employees, do you know who is accountable for your contractors?

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) offers Safety and Health Regulations for Construction. According to the rules of construction “in no case shall the prime contractor be relieved of overall responsibility for compliance with the requirements of this part for all work to be performed under the contract.”

Additionally, OSHA indicates that “to the extent that a subcontractor of any tier agrees to perform any part of the contract, he also assumes responsibility for complying with the standards in this part with respect to that part…With respect to subcontracted work, the prime contractor and any subcontractor or subcontractors shall be deemed to have joint responsibility.”

It’s important that employers take adequate responsibility of keeping the site free from potential hazards. However, we all know that accidents happen. If and when they do, you want to be sure that you cannot be found negligent of maintaining a safe working environment. The OSHA imposes two duties on the employers:

• To provide a hazard-free workplace
• To obey occupational safety and health standards adopted by the OSHA

However, on multi-employer worksites (where employees of two or more employers may be working either independently or jointly, simultaneously or not), OSHA requires an employer to protect both its employees and the employees of third parties on a common worksite where it would be best positioned to control the hazards.

Do you have more questions about construction safety, contractors insurance or otherwise? Talk to the professionals at Artisan Insurance Solutions today. We are happy to help you secure your reliable insurance policies so that you feel better protected.