New agreements regarding safety in the construction industry
Dec 30, 2018
Attorney Shlomi Hadar – John Geva, Hadar & Co. Law Firm
Hours before a planned strike that was supposed to encompass large parts of the economy, and after intensive negotiations, on November 6, 2018, Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon, Labor and Welfare Minister Haim Katz, Construction and Housing Minister Yoav Galant, and Histadrut Chairman Avi Nissenkorn reached agreements regulating the issue of safety in the workplace and in the construction industry in particular, in order to prevent the scourge of the state - accidents in the construction industry. Below are the main agreements reached by the parties.
Scaffolding: The Ministry of Labour will work to make the European standard mandatory for contractors at construction sites.
Safety Nets for Work at Height: Under the agreements, a professional team will be established to submit recommendations for introducing a requirement to install suitable safety nets at construction sites.
Raising Public Awareness: A targeted campaign will raise public awareness of the importance of safety rules, with particular emphasis on working at height and using safety harnesses and other protective equipment. A telephone and online hotline will also be established for reporting safety violations at construction sites. This may encourage neighbours and other interested parties to report violations occurring at nearby sites.
Crane Operators: The Ministry of Labour will advance government legislation requiring crane operators to be employed through dedicated companies. To combat forged licences, site managers will be given access to a computerized database to verify certified tower crane operators. The ministry will also work to establish statutory responsibility for all aspects of crane maintenance, safe operating condition, and routine servicing.
Basic Safety Training: The Occupational Safety Administration at the Ministry of Labour will develop and enforce a basic safety training requirement for every construction site worker and designate the bodies authorized to provide it. Employers will be responsible for arranging and funding the training.
Safety Assistants and Safety Officers: Legislation will be advanced to introduce safety assistants at construction sites classified as high density residential construction, and to provide assistants to support site managers on safety matters at locations where civil engineering works are being carried out and which have been designated as construction sites.
The Client’s Responsibility: The Minister of Labour will advance amendments to the construction safety regulations to change the current situation, in which the site manager bears sole responsibility for safety issues at a construction site. The amendments will establish a hierarchy of responsibility that includes, among others, the party commissioning the construction work.
The Ministry of Labour will conduct an enhanced enforcement campaign to ensure compliance with the statutory limits on working hours at construction sites, including for crane operators, to reduce accidents caused by worker fatigue.
The Contractors Registrar: A legislative amendment will be advanced to authorize the Registrar to disqualify contractors, refuse licence renewals, suspend licences, and exercise other statutory powers on the basis of safety deficiencies, following recommendations from the Occupational Safety Administration at the Ministry of Labour. It will also provide authority to suspend licences immediately in serious circumstances. The aim is to complete the legislation by the end of the current Knesset session.
These changes, intended to improve safety in the construction industry, are undoubtedly welcome. However, it is too early to declare success, as most of the agreements still depend on legislative processes that will probably also involve waiting periods before the requirements take effect at construction sites.
Safety rules and preventive measures, such as safety nets, helmets, and appropriate clothing, can effectively reduce many hazards at relatively little cost. At the same time, the legal exposure of those working in the construction industry is increasing significantly. Appropriate insurance coverage must therefore be reassessed periodically so that, alongside compliance with safety requirements, it provides protection against potential claims or sanctions imposed by the various regulators.
Agreements
Scaffolding – The Ministry of Labor will work to make the European standard mandatory for contractors on construction sites.
Protective nets for working at height - According to the agreements, a professional team will be established that will submit recommendations to emphasize the obligation to install appropriate protective nets on construction sites.
Increasing public awareness – A targeted campaign will be launched to raise public awareness on the importance of safety rules. As part of the campaign, special emphasis will be placed on rules for working at height and the use of harnesses and other protective equipment. In addition, a telephone and Internet "hotline" will be established to serve as a focal point for reports of violations of safety rules at work on construction sites, which may lead neighbors and various stakeholders to report violations occurring on construction sites.
Crane Operators – The Ministry of Labor will work to promote a government bill for the employment of crane operators by designated companies. The Ministry of Labor will combat fake licenses by allowing foremen to enter a computerized database in order to identify qualified tower crane operators. The Ministry of Labor will work to regulate the statutory responsibility for all aspects of crane maintenance, its integrity, its ongoing maintenance, etc.
Basic safety training – The Safety Director at the Ministry of Labor will formulate and enforce the application of mandatory basic training for every worker on construction sites, while determining the bodies authorized to conduct the training. The implementation of the training will be the responsibility and funding of the employers.
Safety assistants and safety trainers - A bill will be promoted to introduce safety assistants to construction sites on a site fenced off as "saturated construction" or a safety assistant who will assist the construction manager with safety matters on a site where engineering construction work is being carried out and is determined to be a construction site.
Responsibility of the person commissioning the work – The Minister of Labor will promote an amendment to the construction safety regulations to change the current situation in which the construction manager is solely responsible for safety problems on a construction site, by establishing a hierarchy of responsibility that includes, among other things, the person commissioning the construction work.
The Ministry of Labor will conduct an increased enforcement operation to ensure strict adherence to the limit of working hours permitted by law on construction sites, including those of crane operators, in order to reduce accidents that occur due to worker fatigue on the site.
Registrar of Contractors – An amendment to the law will be promoted that will authorize the Registrar to disqualify, not renew, suspend, and exercise his additional powers under the law, based on safety deficiencies, in accordance with the recommendation of the Safety Director at the Ministry of Labor, as well as the authority to immediately suspend a license in serious circumstances, all with the goal of having the legislation completed by the end of the current session of the Israeli Knesset.
There is undoubtedly a need to welcome the change designed to increase safety at work in the construction industry. However, it is still too early to celebrate the completion of the project, as most of the approvals are still subject to legislative processes that will most likely require waiting periods before they can be applied to construction sites.
Safety rules and preventive measures such as protective nets, helmets, appropriate clothing, etc., can effectively and relatively inexpensively reduce many dangers. However, at the same time, the legal exposure of those involved in the construction industry has increased significantly, and it is necessary to periodically re-examine the appropriate insurance coverage that, together with the implementation of safety regulations, will provide a protective net against potential claims or sanctions from the various regulators.
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