Photo Courtesy of Edwin Torres/Mayoral Photography Office
Introduction 1447-C increases safety training requirements for construction workers.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday held public hearings for, and signed, 12 pieces of legislation into law, including Intro. 1447-C, which increases safety training requirements for construction workers.
According to the City Council, Intro. 1447-C specifies certain training and qualification requirements that the persons engaged in the construction and demolition of certain buildings must meet.
The final bill:
• Establishes site safety training requirements for workers at most construction sites (excluding sites that involve buildings with only one to three dwelling units or minor work).
• Requires workers to undergo between 40-55 hours of safety training. These hours will be specified by the City Department of Buildings and will be phased in over time.
• Allows workers to fulfill their training requirement by completing an alternative training program, such as an apprenticeship program, but only if DOB determines that that program is equivalent to, or more extensive than, the standard safety training requirements.
• Allows laborers to continue working while they complete training. After completing 10 hours of initial training, workers will be eligible for temporary cards that will authorize them to work on construction sites while they complete the rest of the required training.
“Today’s historic bill signing represents the next chapter in the progressive fight for safer workplaces and their surrounding areas,” said Gary LaBarbera, president of Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York. “This law is a significant step in the right direction for improving worker and public safety alike and standardizing rigorous training in New York City.”
According to the City, the development of such a training program would assist thousands of workers comprised of day laborers, employees of small businesses, and other individuals during the first year of the program, at an estimated cost of $1,000 per person, or about $4 million in Fiscal Year 2018. An additional $1 million would be reserved to cover administrative costs.
“For the hard-hats in one of our city’s most dangerous jobs, this bill will help get them home to their families at night and keep the general public safe around construction sites,” de Blasio said on Monday.
Other pieces of legislation that were signed into law this week include Intro. 139-C, which adds non-tobacco shisha to the City’s Smoke-Free Air Act; Intro. 1075-A, requiring hookah bars to post signage warning of the dangers of hookah smoking; Intro. 1539-A, which establishes additional rights and protections for customers who are purchasing second-hand automobiles; and Intro. 1540-A, which requires second-hand automobile dealers to display and provide consumers with a bill of rights.
