Landscape Contractors Take Workplace Safety to the Next Level

HERNDON, Va. - The Associated Landscape Contractors of America (ALCA) announced that more than 300 landscape contracting companies have signed up for the new ALCA Safety Training Achieves Remarkable Success (STARS) Safe Company Program, which was launched in November 2003.

Developed in partnership with CNA Insurance and in keeping with the recent alliance with OSHA to further the safety and health of workers in the industry, this safety program was designed to move the industry toward safety excellence, and it encourages all landscape contractors to take workplace safety to the next level. There is no fee to participate in the program, and all landscape contractors are invited to become STARS members.
 
The new program asks participants to sign a “Pledge of Honor” that they will “join in the mission of moving the profession toward safety excellence through active involvement, sharing experiences, and becoming a mentor for living safety.”  STARS members commit to developing a strong safety program using the ALCA/STARS Safety Resource Manual as a guideline, having an active safety committee in place, and conducting weekly safety awareness meetings. They will also be asked to participate in the ALCA Safety Awards Program, to comply with all OSHA posting requirements, to investigate and document all accidents, to encourage other companies to become ALCA STARS members, and to share best practices with fellow STARS members.
 
“This is the ideal opportunity to move safety to the next level and to do it for all the right reasons. Being safe means we care about people, about saving lives, and reducing injuries,” says ALCA Safety/Insurance Committee Chairperson David Snodgrass, Dennis’ Seven Dees Landscaping. “Being safe for ‘all the right reasons’ has powerful rewards that go beyond humanitarian concerns. Intrinsically safe companies are well managed organizations that demonstrate a high degree of integrity and professionalism — an important point of distinction for employees, customers, suppliers, and communities.”

For more information about the program, please visit www.alca.org, contact Kirsten Combs at kirstencombs@alca.org, or call the ALCA office at 800/ 395-2522.