What is a Safety Stand-Down?

It's when you take a break from normal work activities so your crew can focus on a particular jobsite safety topic, such as training on safe use of ladders or inspection of full body harnesses.

Watch this video of one construction company's Safety Stand-Down and how they got their teams involved in developing their safety plan. 

Falls are the leading cause of injury and death in construction in Washington state, as shown in this infographic.

Falls in Construction | Spanish

Infographic: Construction Fatalities from Falls | Spanish

Get involved!

Start now. Any construction business in Washington state can choose how to participate and what to address. You'll find plenty of ideas and ready-to-go resources on various topics.

Request assistance

Contact a safety professional for assistance with your company’s Stand-Down.

2023 Safety Stand-Down supporters

Share your success stories!

Tell us what worked for your company (Spanish) and print out a Certificate of Participation from L&I.

Stand-Down activities can range from short toolbox talks to scheduled, full-day events. Pick what’s right for your company.

See the Resources tab for additional information.

Stand-down Ideas

Planning for a full week of simple stand-down activities? Here are some ideas:

Day 1, Ladder Safety: 15-minute Toolbox talk with crew followed by safety audit of job site ladders to make improvements.

Day 2, Roofing Safety: Falls Change Lives — David's Story — What happens when you fall from a roof? Hear the true story (Video) of one man's tragic fall and how it changed his life forever. Then ask your crew to share stories of “near misses” or injuries due to falls and ideas for successful solutions.

Day 3, Skylight, Floor, & Wall Opening Safety: Show a video or use a handout that addresses these fall hazards that may be common at your job site. Get ideas from crews about effective solutions for site issues and follow-up.

Day 4, Assess Your Fall Hazards: Use this Construction Safety Checklist to help identify fall hazards at your current job site. Get ideas from your crew about how to effectively prevent falls while doing the work. Use the results to create or refresh your fall prevention program.

Day 5, Reporting for Safety: Already had a Safety Stand-Down at your construction site? Great! Tell us about your event (Spanish) and print out a Certificate of Participation from L&I.

Some simple stand-down ideas:

• Pass out a fatality narrative or bulletin about a real-life fall incident to spark discussion with crews.
• Watch a fall prevention video with crews and recap important messages afterwards.
• Remind crews on how to report damaged gear, equipment, and other safety issues that could cause a fall.
• Ask crews to share “near miss” stories.
• Demonstrate inspection, set up, and safe use of portable ladders.
• Review the site fall protection work plan with crews.

Hands-on Ideas

Planning for a full week of simple hands-on activities? Here are some ideas:

• Safety check jobsite ladders, fall protection systems, and other equipment using a checklist.
• Download and use NIOSH's Ladder Safety App.
• Guide crews through how to correctly inspect and put on fall protection
• Develop a procedure for reporting and addressing damaged equipment. Supply “out of service” tags or tape to mark bad equipment.
• Walk around the jobsite with crews and point out possible fall hazard issues and solutions.
• Create a “What’s Right with this Photo” handout for crews. Take photos of safe equipment and solutions to fall safety problems.

Ideas that require more planning:

• Contact a safety professional for an on-site consultation to review safety programs and help you identify and fix fall hazards.
• Find a safety speaker who is a fall incident survivor to speak to crews about what happened to them.
• Attend a safety event that offers training on fall prevention.
• Set up a safety demonstration from an equipment vendor.

Fall protection

Basic & Ready-to-Use

• Fall Protection Basics for Construction - Spanish
• Hazard Alert – Fall Protection Harnesses
• Head Injury After Fall from Stepladder Video

Hands-on

• eTool Unified Fall Protection Comparison
• Construction Checklist-Safety (see page 3 for falls)

Ladders

Basic & Ready-to-Use

• Roofer Falls 10 Feet from Fixed Ladder
• Instalador de techos cae 10 pies de una escalera de mano fija
• Framer Falls 8 Feet from Extension Ladder
• Instalador de estructuras cae 8 pies de una escalera de extensión
• Don't Fall For It! video
• Electrocution/Work Safely with Ladders Near Power Lines video
• Ladder Safety Guide
• Toolbox Talk-Falls: Extension Ladders

Hands-on

• Ladder Safety Checklist
• Ladder Safety App for iPhone or Android Smartphone

Scaffolds & Aerial Lifts

Basic & Ready-to-Use

• Laborer Climbing Scaffold Cross Braces Falls 25 Feet
• Siding Installer Falls 23 Feet from Pump Jack Scaffold
• Instalador de paneles laterales cae 23 pies de andamio de palometa de gato
• Toolbox Talk: Preventing Falls from Scaffolding
• Toolbox Talk: Aerial Lifts - Spanish

Hands-on

• Construction Checklist Safety (see page 4 for scaffolds)

Roofs & Skylights

Basic & Ready-to-Use

• Roofing Fall Protection Training Course
• Roofing Falls in Residential Construction - Spanish
• Framer Falls 25 Feet from House Roof
• Instalador de estructuras cae 25 pies del techo de una casa
• Preventing Falls Through Skylights video
• Toolbox Talk: Preventing Falls from Rooftops

Floor and Wall Openings

Basic & Ready-to-Use

• Carpenter Falls through Floor of Two-Story Garage
• You’re a Pro: Falls through Openings video
• Toolbox Talk: How do we prevent falls through skylights and holes?
• Toolbox Talk: Falls Through Holes and Openings - Spanish

Other resources

• More about the National Fall Prevention Stand-Down

2023 Participants

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Tell us what worked for your company  (Spanish) and print out a Certificate of Participation from L&I.

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