National Pavement Expo’s 2016 four-day conference program offers a handful of sessions designed to help contractors and their team leaders make sure their employees are the company asset they need to be.
“Temporary and Contingent Workers: The Weak Link in Your Safety Chain?” Friday, Jan. 29, 8:00-9:30 a.m.
Among the new employee-related sessions is “Temporary and Contingent Workers: The Weak Link in Your Safety Chain?” presented by attorney Adele L. Abrams. Abrams, who bills herself as “The Safety Lawyer,” says the paving and pavement maintenance and construction industries have seen a steady increase in the use of temporary and contingent workers. But she says these workers get injured and killed at rates much higher than permanent employees and the use of these short-term workers raise a variety of other legal issues.
As described in the session description, Abrams “will discuss the new U.S. Department of Labor/OSHA enforcement focus on temporary/contingent worker safety and health, issues involving recordkeeping, worker training, PPE, and communication with temporary agencies and union hiring halls. Plus you’ll get an update on key legal issues including tort liability and implications for worker's compensation litigation and you’ll take home proactive solutions for improving jobsite safety where permanent and temporary workers are present.”
“Hiring and Developing Your Labor Force,” Wednesday, Jan. 27, 3:00-4:30 p.m.
Another timely issues is the finding, hiring and retention of quality workers. Associated General Contractors estimates that the construction industry lost more than 2 million skilled workers since 2006. That combined with more than 1 million workers expected to retire within 10 years has already caused concern for contractors – and the problem is expected to only get worse.
But Randy Larson, Purpose Contracting Asphalt, has made it a point to tackle the labor issue and in “Hiring and Developing Your Labor Force” Larson “will walk you through the process he uses to find, hire and develop the employees he wants in his company. You’ll learn advertising tips, resume insights, and how (and where) to conduct the interview, how you can always be ‘trolling’ for new hires – and you’ll learn how it’s all worked. And once you’ve found the right person you’ll learn what that first day on the job should be like to make that person a long-term hire.”
But perhaps the most intriguing part of the session will be Larson’s outlining of an apprenticeship approach that Purpose Contracting has used to great success – and it’s an approach that any company can easily implement to find new hires.
Night Work: Tips to Aid Workers, Tips to Help Managers, Wednesday, Jan. 27, 3:00-4:30 p.m.
And then there’s night work. This has always been in issue for sweeping contractors whose operators sweeping parking lots when the rest of us are catching a few winks. But more and more customers are expecting contractors to work in the dark – and that requires special efforts by both managers and workers.
Bill Davis, Circadian Technologies Inc., who will present “Night Work: Tips to Aid Workers, Tips to Help Managers,” knows that contractors who work at night face issues of safety and liability, performance, morale and absenteeism. And that can affect a company’s profits as well as an operator’s life away from work.
In what Davis describes as a “solutions-oriented session,” contractors will learn specific steps to take to reduce the impact night work has on workers. “Shiftwork policies and practices will be discussed and you’ll be introduced to new research that will affect how you manage your night operators.”
In addition, Davis will outline what management can do – and what workers themselves can do – to improve night worker’s on-the-job experience as well as their life away from work.
For details and to register visit www.nationalpavementexpo.com.
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Registration Open for NPE 2016
Registration conferences and the exhibit floor for National Pavement Expo, Jan. 27-30, 2016 in Charlotte, NC is now open at www.nationalpavementexpo.com.
In addition to viewing descriptions of the more than 50 conference sessions (and the new Pre-Conference day-long Boot Camp Plus, “Taking the Next Step in Leadership,” presented by Brad Humphrey, Pinnacle Development Group), contractors can view the exhibit floor plan, which is updated regularly as new exhibitors sign up.
Hotel registration also is open through official housing company, onPeak. Hotel rooms are limited and can be reserved through the website, by calling 800-967-6163 or by sending an e-mail to [email protected].
