United AssociationThree Park Place

Annapolis, MD 21401-3153ua.org

STANDARD FOR

SAFETY

The UA Standard for Safety is one of the corner-stones of the UA’s “Built on Excellence.” TheStandard for Safety is driven from the UA’score value in which we believe that everyworker has a right to go home from thejob in the same shape as when he orshe arrived at the workplace. Withinthis core value, the UA is commit-ted to protecting the safety andhealth of our members, ourcontractors, project owners,and the communities inwhich we work.

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Our commitment to the safety of our members is front and center alongwith quality and productivity. These three priorities are integral to our successand the success of our partners.

The UA Standard for Safety embodies our core value that every workerhas the right to go home from the job, just as he or she arrived, free frominjury.

In our rich history as the United Association, many have come and gonebefore us and some paid a heavy price with injuries or even their lives. Weowe a debt to those who paved the way, and we can repay that debt byhonoring our past and learning from their sacrifices.

Complying with regulations is a beginning, but we know it is notenough to keep everyone safe. We must be willing to raise the bar, deepenour commitment and our resolve, because there should never be a timewhen a brother or sister goes to work only to be injured doing the workthat we do.

The UA Standard for Safety defines the commitment to safety for ourmembers and our signatory contractors. Just like the UA Standard for Excellence, these are guiding principles. I encourage you to renew yourpersonal commitment to safety each and every day for yourselves, yourfamilies, and your coworkers.

On behalf of all of your General Officers, I want to extend my sincerestthanks for the work you do and your dedication to our organization. It iswith gratitude for your continued loyalty to our great union, that I remain

Fraternally yours,

Mark McManusGeneral President

The UA Standard for Safety is . . .

• The UA’s commitment as a core value, both personal and organizational, is to create a mindset intolerant of any exposure to unsafe working condi-tions or on-the-job injury regardless of the level of frequency or severity.

• Standing up for our commitment, understanding that nothing less than ex-cellence is acceptable.

• One of the defining criteria for excellence.

• Fostering a culture of actively caring for one another’s safety every day.

• Value-based and people-centered, where people are a solution to beharnessed, not a problem to be solved.

• Not a competition or tug-of-war between personal and organiza-tional priorities.

• More than numbers or statistics; it is proactive rather than re-active, and communicated in terms of safety as its relation-ship to people and risk.

• Fostering a workplace where all people are free to speakup to identify safety concerns and organizational blindspots to prevent future incidents; where incidents areviewed as opportunities to learn about and addressfactors that contributed to an event.

• An environment where coaching, given andreceived, is not viewed as a confrontation butalways as an opportunity to share a con-cern, to learn and build relationships.

• Remembering our past while embrac-ing new possibilities, not limiting ourthoughts and ideas to the past, butenvisioning the future and chal-lenging ourselves to rise to thenew possibilities.

A Special Messagefrom

General President Mark McManus

• Commit to working safely because it is a personal corevalue, one that should never be compromised, for yourself,your family, or your coworkers.Take pride in working safely.

• Actively care for one another’ssafety.

• Do the right thing and nevertake shortcuts or compromisesafety in any way for the sake of getting the job done.

• Lead by example with safetyevery day on every job.

• Participate in daily pre-planningof the work. Recognize hazardsand never ignore or overlooksomething unsafe.

• Be willing to speak up whensomething is not safe, and worktogether to bring ideas and solu-tions to eliminate the hazard andprevent future incidents.

• Be an active participant in all required training and safetymeetings.

• Take advantage of all availabletraining opportunities.

• Bring forward ideas from a design perspective to performthe work safer with less risk.

• Ensure that you understand how to do the task safely beforebeginning, and ensure you haveand use all the necessary toolsand protective equipment.

• Be accountable through the UAStandard for Safety and the UAStandard for Excellence.

• Adopt safety as a personal and organi-zational core value. Partner with theUA and industry groups to drive safetyin the workplace as a value that shouldnever be compromised and that shouldbe advanced through proactive stepsand planning.

• Foster a culture of caring within your organization.

• Align safety with production so thatone is not compromised for the sake of the other.

• Lead by example with safety at all levels of the organization.

• Pre-plan the work, communicate the plan and involve workers in thecreation and execution of the plan.Address all safety hazards that mayarise before work begins and as workprogresses.

• Empower people to speak up whensomething is unsafe. Work together to find effective solutions to ensure asafe work environment.

• Ensure all workers have the requiredtraining before engaging in a task.

• Encourage those in supervisory rolesto take additional safety and healthtraining.

• Adopt prevention-through-designstrategies, seeking new ways for peopleto perform the work with less risk.

• Provide adequate resources to ensureworkers have the appropriate informa-tion, tools, and protective equipment.

• Foster a culture of balancing accounta-bility with safety, and balancing ac-countability with learning.

UA Member Commitment

Signatory EmployerCommitment

It is recognized that nothing in these Standards is intendedto waive employees’ rights to due process on the job.