UNITED STATES July 05 2015 12:00 PM

By Mark Carpenter
As part of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) Safety Stand-Down Day today, recyclers across the country will demonstrate their commitment to safety as a core value. Companies will shut down operations for at least one hour on every shift to engage in safety awareness training. The training can take any form, from employee training to a management walk-around, or any other effective safety training method.

"Last year we created an industry-wide Safety Stand-Down Day to address growing concern over workplace fatalities and injuries,” said Robin Wiener, president of ISRI. “Since that time last October, we have made great strides, but every time a worker does not come home to his or her family it is one time too many. That is why this year we focused on the theme, ‘Be Safe to Be There.’ We want every worker to be safe so they are there for family holidays, birthdays, fishing trips, graduations, just relaxing in front of the television, or any other activity. By focusing on safety as a core value, we encourage safe practices in the workplace.”

Throughout the weeks leading up to today, ISRI provided its members with a series of Safety Training Guides, each focused on a significant safety risk: lockout tagout, mobile equipment, confined spaces, fall protection, and machine guarding. Each set of materials included handouts and teaching aids such as videos, PowerPoint presentations, and OSHA fact sheets.

"Through a dedicated effort by every recycling company, we can become a leading example to other industries that it is possible to improve a safety record,” concluded Wiener.

Find more information about Safety Stand-Down Day, including all of the Safety Training Guides, information on industry fatalities, and ISRI’s Safety Outreach program on the ISRI Safety Stand-Down Day website.