At times, workers may be required to work in hot environments for long periods. When the human body is unable to maintain a normal temperature, heat illnesses can occur and may result in death. It is also important to consider that hot work environments may exist indoors. This fact sheet provides information to employers on measures they should take to prevent worker illnesses and death caused by heat stress.

The New York City Department of Buildings has released final rules regarding Site Safety Managers, Site Safety Coordinators and Construction Superintendents.

 The 2022 Construction Codes will now require both a Construction Superintendent and either a Site Safety Manager or Coordinator to be designated for work subject to Building Code sections 3301.13.3 and 3310.1 on buildings 10 stories or greater in height

These will be published in the City Record on 7/15/22. 

The effective date for these rules is 8/14/22.

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Safe + Sound Week is a nationwide event held each August that recognizes the successes of workplace health and safety programs and offers information and ideas on how to keep America's workers safe.

Why Participate?
Successful safety and health programs can proactively identify and manage workplace hazards before they cause injury or illness, improving sustainability and the bottom line. Participating in Safe + Sound Week can help get your program started, energize an existing one, or provide a chance to recognize your safety successes.

Who Participates?
All organizations looking for an opportunity to recognize their commitment to safety are welcome to participate. Last year, more than 5,300 businesses helped to raise awareness about workers' health and safety!

Participating is as easy as 1-2-3!

Click below for more information.

If you've submitted a project for consideration, sign your team up to attend. Find out if your company has won a Construction Excellence Award and accept it in front of hundreds of your industry peers.

Even if you haven't submitted a project of your own, come and enjoy a night celebrating the Chapter's best, network with other industry professionals, and find out who will be this year's recipient of the coveted, red Empire State Chapter Hall of Fame jacket.

During the day, enjoy our Construction Excellence Golf Classic on the Otesaga's challenging Leatherstocking Golf Course, or sip locally sourced beer and liquor with a beautiful view of Otsego Lake at our tasting event.

Last week, a New York State Supreme Court judge ruled that New York’s regulation establishing isolation and quarantine procedures related to COVID-19 and other highly communicable diseases is void and unenforceable.

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• On July 5th,  Governor Hochul signed a package of bills all geared towards renewable energy project in New York State. More specifically, the Governor is touting these bills as her way of ensuring that all renewable energy projects are built using 100% union labor. These bills will impact every contractor performing renewable energy construction in New York State. Our team has put together the following overview of the legislation that was recently signed:
  
  Covered renewable energy project definition changes from 5 Megawatts or more to 1 Megawatt or more
  
  This law changed the definition of a “covered renewable energy project” from five megawatts or more to only one megawatt or more. That change means that virtually every single renewable energy project in New York State will be subject to prevailing wage and either a Project Labor Agreement or a Labor Peace Agreement. This law took effect as soon as the Governor signed the bill.

• Advanced Building Codes, Appliance and Equipment Efficiency Standards Act
  
  This law changes the state energy conservation construction code by increasing the efficiency standards of appliances and equipment and bans certain types of appliances and equipment that do not support the States climate agenda set forth by the climate leadership and community protection act. The law will further require the state’s new building code to take the state’s climate goals into account “to the fullest extent possible” as they’re developed.

• Utility Thermal Energy Network and Jobs Act
  
  This law promotes the construction of thermal energy facilities through state funding. It also requires Prevailing Wage and Project Labor Agreements be mandated on these projects.

Before session ended in June, both houses of the state Legislature passed a bill that will create a harmful and duplicative registration system for all general and sub-contractors performing public work in New York State.

These are the negative impacts this law will bring if signed by the governor as outlined in our memo:

• Establish a new unfunded and expensive mandate for the Department of Labor, staff and a new information technology system will be required to operate this new registration system
  
  
• Create another mandate on the already overburdened Department of Labor to establish and maintain another contractor and subcontractor registration system for public work
  
  
• Reduce competition due to the complexity of the registration and compliance process, which only further increases the issue of workforce shortages
  
  
• Issues with creating a new system such as: technical problems or a missed date on a registration submission could cause delays and work stoppages
  
  
• Declaring the contractor or subcontractor “unfit” leads to many different issues like bonding complications, fines, legal disputes, and other expenses that could cause contractors to close their doors

This bill has not yet been sent to the governor for final signature. In the meantime, ABC will continue to strongly oppose the adopting of this bill and will continue to update our members as we proceed.

ABC Empire State Chapter | www.abcnys.org