I promised myself that I wasn't going to mention potatoes, so I won't. That doesn't count. Coming in at #33 in our countdown is the state of Idaho, often referred to as the "Gem State." Boosted by their relatively low cost of living at 8.7% below the national average, Idaho jumped 11 spots after adjustment.
Read moreOSHA Proposes Rule Rolling Back Injury and Illness Requirements for Large Companies
OSHA
When the Trump Administration released their Spring 2018 Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions earlier this year, they promised a few regulation rollbacks that would affect the construction industry throughout the year.
Among those rollbacks was a plan to “reconsider, revise or remove provisions of Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses, also known as the Electronic Injury Reporting and Anti-Retaliation final rule in July 2018.” Just under the wire, on July 27, OSHA has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would remove the requirement for companies that have 250 or more employees to submit information from OSHA Form 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses) and OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report).
Just like smaller companies, these larger companies will now only be required to electronically submit OSHA Form 300A, which is merely a high level summary of work-related injuries and illnesses. The Department of Labor stated that the proposed change was issued in order to protect privacy and reduce burdens on employers. OSHA Forms 300 and 301 contain sensitive information about individual workers who are injured or made ill.
July 1, 2018 was supposed to be the deadline for large companies to submit the OSHA Forms 300 and 301 with 2017 data through the online system, but OSHA is not currently accepting them, pending the rule change. OSHA is, however, currently accepting OSHA Form 300A with 2017 data, though any forms submitted past July 1 will be counted as late.
Full story: The Department of Labor Proposes Rule to Better Protect Personally Identifiable Information | OSHA
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The Top States to Work in Construction: #34 New York
There are a ton of songs about the city of New York, but that unfortunately doesn't help the state in our countdown. Despite having the 4th highest cost of living, at 31.6% higher than the national average (according to MERIC), New York did still manage to land a few construction professions in the top 10, like crane operators, roofers, and concrete finishers, even after adjusting the numbers.
Read moreThe US Cities with the Most Active Tower Cranes
For the third year in a row, Seattle, Washington has the most construction cranes in their city’s skyline, a clear sign that the west coast city is still in a major growth period. Around Christmas 2016, the first year Seattle lead the most cranes race, the city put on an awesome lights show and shared an impressive video of the cranes lighting up the skyline, which you can watch here.
Read moreThe Top States to Work in Construction: #35 Mississippi
If not for having the lowest cost of living in the country, according to the MERIC data, MIssissippi would be in contention for the lowest ranking on our list. However, having a 14.5% lower than the national average boosted the state up 15 spots to #35 after adjustment.
Read moreFrequently Asked Questions About Silica Dust Exposure, Answered
OSHA's new crystalline silica dust exposure regulations officially went into effect on September 23, 2017. Over the past 10 months, there has been plenty of confusion about the lung disease causing material. In the first 6 months after the effective date, OSHA's inspectors yielded 116 violations across the country.
Read moreThe Top States to Work in Construction: #36 Vermont
Vermont is one of the few states in the Northeast that doesn't have a ridiculously high cost of living, according to MERIC, at only 2.9% higher than the national average. That helped Vermont rank higher than many others in the Northeast in this list, but it's lower than average adjusted hourly rates for the construction industry still kept it on the bottom half of the list overall.
Read moreNew Green Building Construction Standard Set to Hit US Market in 2019
Since the dawn of green buildings, these projects have always been synonymous with LEED certification. The process of obtaining that LEED certification has not always been an easy one for contractors; there is a ton of paperwork and documentation that needs to take place in order to prove all LEED credits have been rightfully earned. A new construction standard, called BREEAM, is hoping to disrupt the United States’ green building certification world with its impending New Construction Standard Release in 2019.
Read moreA Look at How the World’s Largest Underwater Restaurant is Being Built
Wind load is an important calculation to figure into the design and construction of most buildings, but a building under construction in Norway will have to pay close attention to something I’ve never even thought about before: wave load.
Read moreThe Top States to Work in Construction: #37 Alabama
Sweet Home Alabama to some, but not quite on this list. Alabama did benefit from a cost of living that's 10% lower than the average state, but that could not help them overcome their relatively low wages before adjustment.
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Last summer, Hilti announced that they had developed their first exoskeleton designed for construction tradespeople in a partnership with Ottobuck, a prosthetics, orthotics, and exoskeleton provider. Earlier this month, Hilti officially released the exoskeleton, announced more details, and published its retail price on their website.