March 2025 Safety Roundup
This blog series serves as a monthly highlight of recent news/updates in the safety industry, including airport, construction, events, and general safety news.
To keep you in the know with recent and current safety highlights, we’ve compiled some of the most pertinent updates and stories here to keep you updated on all things safety.
This month, we’re talking about the upcoming event and construction seasons, along with regular general safety updates.
New OSHA rule geared to enhance workplace safety
While workplaces were already required to keep and submit data pertaining to injury and illness, the newest iteration of the OSHA rule makes some major changes to certain high-risk industries with more than 100 employees.
In addition to the already required electronic submission of Form 300A, businesses with larger amounts of employees in specified industries (construction, manufacturing, etc) must also submit Form 300 –Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses– and Form 301 –Injury and Illness Incident Report– once a year. Businesses are also now required to include their legal name when submitting these records.
OSHA intends to release some of the data (individuals’ identifying details redacted) collected to the public on their website for anyone to review prior to becoming involved with a company. This allows current and potential employees, current and potential customers, employers, and the general public, etc, to make informed decisions with a company’s workplace safety and health record easily available. OSHA believes that the safety and health community will benefit from this information, as well as workers and employers.
As the second year in play, businesses were required to submit all three forms with 2024 data by early March 2025.
DOT removes equity, environmental factors from IIJA funding decisions
Big changes are happening in infrastructure decisions this month – according to the U.S. DOT, environmental and social factors are no longer to be considered for federally funded projects.
A number of Biden-era memos to prioritize projects that “advance equity and environmental goals” on policies like the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act are being rescinded, and those goals will no longer be priorities. New DOT Secretary Sean Duffy called the policy to include social and resilience factors an “act of federal overreach”, and the rollbacks of regulations under the current administration reflect this thought process.
While the states were still in charge of deciding where their federally granted funds went prior to the rescission memo, it remains to be seen how this change will affect projects around the country moving forward.
An uptick in construction site theft necessitates more secure perimeters
Site theft is a major occurrence at construction sites around the globe. In the US alone, there are over 11,000 instances each year, which costs the industry upwards of $1 billion in replacing equipment, fixing vandalism, and significant delays when equipment and materials go missing. Little of what is stolen is ever recovered, which means that more secure perimeters are an essential part of every construction site.
To combat theft, jersey barricades and fencing can be combined to create secure perimeters with controlled access points. Our new temporary fencing pairs perfectly with our construction barricades and barricade fence panels to ensure that the entirety of a site is secured, especially during the spring and summer months when the rate of theft tends to increase on job sites.
New policies have big implications for the construction industry
First announced in February, the new tariffs set by the current administration have already affected contractors around the country. The 10% tariff on Chinese imports was the start, but the 25% tariff on goods from Mexico and Canada heightened the impact. Add in the newest 25% tariff on steel and aluminum worldwide, and many contractors are finding that their bottom line is hurting.
The increase in prices for goods (and the subsequent trade war) has construction costs soaring and will likely lead to delays and cancellations. Labor shortages are also threatened as immigration policies lock down across the country. Entire town economies that thrive on trade may have an uncertain future as new policies continue to play out.
FAA fast-tracks new, much-needed air controllers to fill persistent staffing shortage
Introduced in 2024, the Enhanced Air Traffic Collegiate Training Initiative (AT-CTI) aims to shorten the amount of time it takes to get a newly graduated Air Traffic Control (ATC) Specialist into a tower. The Enhanced Initiative was created to allow those with equivalent FAA ATC Academy training to bypass the Academy and receive localized training at an air traffic facility as a new hire. Graduates must still pass the Air Traffic Skills Assessment (ATSA) and meet all security and health requirements.
The University of North Dakota (UND) was recently added to the growing list of approved institutions that are offering advanced training and technology to fulfill the Enhanced AT-CTI. With a goal of hiring 2,000 new Air Traffic Controllers in 2025, the FAA is working hard to reach the targeted staffing levels – currently short of nearly 3,500 fully certified professionals.
OTW News
Skijoring meets crowd control barriers
Our crowd control barriers made their second appearance at this year’s Winter Roundup in Salt Lake City! Skijoring is the magic that happens when skiing meets horsepower, and the event is a ton of fun for spectators and participants alike.
Created to celebrate Salt Lake’s dynamic culture and honor the heritage and traditions of Utah, the Winter Roundup is a day-long event filled with fun, festivities, live music, good eats, and more. Skijoring is a prominent event during the festivities, and OTW has provided crowd barriers for crowd management for two years running. To keep guests safe, the skijoring track (aka a cordoned-off street specifically for the day) is lined with OTW event barriers to create a defined separation between guests and the action. We love seeing Utah event barricades in action in our community and can’t wait for next year’s event!
Event (and construction) season is right around the corner… are you ready!?
Punxsutawney Phil may have seen his shadow and predicted six more weeks of winter in early February, but those six weeks are nearly over, and spring is on its way. With the weather warming up, everyone is thinking about what they’ll do outside once the warmer days are here to stay.
While nature enthusiasts might be thinking about their next hike or parents await the reopening of the local playground, restaurant owners, event organizers, and project managers are all preparing for the upcoming season of outdoor activities and work sites.
If you’re getting things sorted for the outdoor event season, our Ultimate Guide to Crowd Control might be just the thing to help you get started.
At OTW, the drive for innovation never ends.
We pride ourselves on keeping our products up to date with current safety standards, and we work hard to ensure that a wide variety of safety needs are covered. We continue to strive for excellence in every aspect of our business, and we’ve expanded our rental services and product catalog to support those needs. Coming soon to the OTW website, you’ll find products like concrete barriers, temporary fencing, temporary runway closure markers, and more.
