National safety campaign for employers to improve worker safety on the job site: will companies participate?
Next week several federal agencies and safety organizations are co-sponsoring a huge, national safety awareness campaign targeting businesses and corporations and the need for greater workplace safety and health. Under the banner of “Safe+Sound Week,” respected safety leaders like Illinois’ National Safety Council (NSC) are asking organizations “…of any size or industry to participate and showcase their commitment to safety.”
Too many workers suffer catastrophic injuries or die in preventable accidents while working on the job. The NSC reports that in 2023 (last reporting year) 4543 workers died in preventable injury-related deaths, with a shocking 4,070,000 workers suffering injuries that required medical help.
From the NSC, we also know the riskiest worksites:
- more construction workers die from work injuries than any workers in any other industry;
- transportation workers rank second for most on-the-job fatalities; and
- warehousing industry worksites have the third highest number of worker deaths.
These three industries employ thousands of workers here in our part of the country. For more on the workplace injury risks in these industries here in Illinois and Indiana, read: Construction Worker’s Danger of Being Hurt or Killed on the Job: High Risk and Little Protection; Winter Weather Long Haul Trucking: Deadly Crash Dangers in Illinois and Indiana; and New OSHA National Emphasis Program Targets Dangerous Warehousing Industry.
For safety agencies and advocates for worker victims and their loved ones, the need to enhance employer safety programs and keep workers safe on the job is undeniably important.
Workers should be alert to their employers’ participation (or lack thereof) in this national work safety campaign.
What is Safe + Sound Week?
Alongside the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the NSC, the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR); the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP); the Voluntary Protection Programs Participants Association (VPPPA); and the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) are promoting the year-round campaign “…to encourage every workplace to have a safety and health program,” during the week of August 11 – 17, 2025.
The focus here is simple. OSHA explains that “safe workplaces are sound businesses,” and the campaign is promoting three factors that work together to keep people safe while on the job. They are (1) management leadership; (2) worker participation; and (3) systemic approach to finding and fixing hazards.
Management Leadership
OSHA defines this as a “commitment from the top” to “continuous improvement in safety and health,” explaining that workers are aware of their company’s approach to safety on the worksite and that employers can boost the confidence of their workforce by doing things like developing and sharing the company’s specific safety and health policy statement; talking about safety in everyday conversations; rewarding worker contributions and achievements to safety at their workplace; and including safety and health of workers in company decision-making.
For more, including employer “challenges” and various free resources for things like writing a safety policy, see the OSHA Management Leadership page.
Worker Participation
No one knows their worksite better than the worker who is there, day after day, earning a living. OSHA encourages employers to respect this fact and to “…tap into workers’ collective experiences, knowledge, and insights in order to find solutions to workplace safety and health challenges.”
It may seem obvious, but too many employers, from the CEO to the supervisor on the floor, are blind to the invaluable safety resources they have there on the payroll. Workers, especially those with significant experience, are more than willing to point out risks and safety concerns they have seen while at work. They need to be asked and rewarded for their contributions.
See the OSHA Worker Participation page for details, where a number of free resources are provided for employers from things like hosting group discussions, to documents with help for things like heat safety on the worksite.
Finding and Fixing Hazards
Of course, the goal of any safety campaign is to reduce the likelihood of someone being hurt or killed. With next week’s promotions, OSHA and its co-sponsors are hoping that companies will realize that being reactive to an accident and fixing hazards after an incident is not the best way to protect their employees. From OSHA:
“Actions are taken only after a worker is injured or becomes sick, a new standard or regulation is published, or an outside inspection finds a problem that must be fixed. Finding and fixing hazards using a proactive approach, before they cause injury or illness, is far more effective.”
Next week, employers in Illinois and Indiana, as well as the rest of the country, are invited to not only ask workers to point out hazards, but to conduct workplace inspections for injury risks as well as studying past accidents to learn how best to prevent similar injuries in the future. Emergency plans could be drawn up in advance of unexpected events (like tornadoes).
Free resources to help employers in efforts to proactively make worksites safer are provided on the OSHA Finding and Fixing Hazards page.
High Risk for Workers in Construction, Transportation, or Warehousing in Illinois and Indiana
We have more people working in the three most dangerous industries (construction; transportation; warehousing) than many other states. Illinois, for instance, is in the midst of historic road work construction with Project Rebuild Illinois. Indiana is famous for the amount of large truck traffic moving along its Crossroads of America. Both states have an astonishing number of warehouses, serving huge corporations like John Deere and Amazon.
Supporting Safe + Sound Week is extremely important for employers in Illinois and Indiana whose revenues are generated by workers in the construction, transportation, or warehousing industries here. The dangers in these three types of worksites are well-known.
Both industrial standards and safety regulations exist to help prevent work accidents, but all too often employers neglect or intentionally disregard these safety measures, with tragic results.
For more, read:
- Semi Truck Crash Liability: Third Party Liability in Indiana Truck Accidents
- Trucking Companies, Owner-Operators Liability in Indiana Truck Accidents
- Engineers, Architects: Professional Liability for a Road Construction Work Zone Accident
- Liability in Chicago Warehouse Worker Injury Claims: Accident Expert Investigations
- Legal Liability for Delivery Truck Accident Injuries: How Many Have Responsibility for the Crash?
- Who Can Be Held Liable for Construction Worker Accidents?
Workers who suffer serious injury or death on the job do have legal avenues for justice under state law and in some instances, federal statute. Their loved ones may have legal claims for the injury, too. More than one party may be legally liable for a work accident. Claims may be available not only under state worker’s compensation insurance mandates but also based upon things like negligence, product liability, premises liability, and more.
To learn more about specific Safe + Sound Week events in Illinois or Indiana, check out the online map which lists the various state events and participating employers.
Too many workers suffer life-altering harm or perish from work-related injuries in Illinois and Indiana, with the risks of death on-the-job being particularly high in our construction, transportation, and warehousing industries. Employers need to prioritize the safety of their workers. Please be careful out there!
