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Have you ever been to an industry trade show? I usually attend several each year; the INTEX Expo, World of Concrete, and this year I had the opportunity to attend the Remodeling Show sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders at the Convention Center in Baltimore. You can always tell when a trade show is in town. Local restaurants and hotels are filled with small groups wearing matching shirts.

Plastering being one of the oldest of occupations, or as I am fond of calling it, the second “oldest profession” is represented in the United States and Canada by the Operative Plasterers’ and Cement Masons’ International Association, which was chartered in 1864 and is the oldest of all the active building trades unions in North America.

“Some men must follow, and some command, though all are made of clay” ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I stood along the rail of an upper tier at the Nashville Convention Center, home of the 2009 AWCI Convention and Intex Expo trade show. I watched two middle-aged men approaching each other on opposing escalators, one going up, the other going down.

I know that it has been a while since I was a small remodeling contractor, but has the state of the art really fallen this far?

When I first began to learn how to plaster, if someone would have told me then that it would one day become necessary for me to learn to speak Italian, I would have chuckled and turned away.

As the director of a national training program for plasterers, I help develop and implement training criteria and curriculum materials for young people just entering the trade. So, nothing gives me greater pleasure than to witness young men and women, who’ve got a few years under their belt, excelling at the craft-especially in a down economy! 

Are contractors who pay their employees cash or who misclassify their workers as “subcontractors” for the purpose of avoiding taxes, worker compensation insurance cutting into your business?

Dimitris Spiliadis’ great-grandfather once owned a hotel in Constantinople, which was lost when the Turks invaded the magnificent and historic city (now known as Istanbul).

We’ve all watched and enjoyed the Discovery Channel television show “How It’s Made” and maybe even had a passing thought about how great it would be to have such a program showcase and explain to the general public what it is we do.

The plastering trade has, for thousands of years, passed down the knowledge and skill of the trade from one generation to the next. Except for the inclusion of modern machinery, the way and manner plaster is applied to a wall really hasn’t changed much since before the time of Christ.

Back in the 1980s, the term “Trickle Down Economics” was coined to describe a theory that if we gave incentives to business owners, they will in turn invest and expand their operations, thereby creating new jobs and greater opportunity for all. Economists and politicians are still debating if the policies of the ’80s helped or hurt the country.

He was born in a dusty little town in nowhere New Mexico, coming of age during the height of the Great Depression.

The National Council for Voluntary Organisations says Fair Collective had completed the work it had been contracted to deliver but the consultancy disputes this

Associated Builders and Contractors announced Oct. 7 that it has named John Mielke as its senior director of apprenticeship. The former ABC Wisconsin chapter president will provide strategic direction, transformational leadership and innovative education solutions to ABC’s 67 chapters, 23,000 members and their apprenticeship trusts nationwide.

Washington – After more than two decades in development, OSHA’s final rule on walking/working surfaces to address slips, trips and falls is under White House review.

Anaheim, CA – OSHA’s final rule on walking/working surfaces to address slips, trips and falls in the workplace soon could be a reality, agency administrator David Michaels said Tuesday during a roundtable discussion at the 2016 NSC Congress & Expo.

Tumwater, WA — A new toolkit from the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries offers employers resources they can use to help injured employees return to work as soon as medically possible, aid worker recovery and prevent long-term disability while reducing the financial burden of workers’ compensation claims.

New York – A new report compiles accounts from 9/11 responders recalling their experiences responding to the attacks and, later, managing their World Trade Center-related health conditions.

Lowell, MA — Noting that corrections officers have an average life expectancy that’s 16 years less than other occupational groups, the Center for the Promotion of Health in the New England Workplace has created a mentoring toolkit aimed at combating a decline in health early in correctional workers’ careers.

Washington — A new virtual toolkit from NIOSH is intended to help protect first responders from exposure to illicit drugs, including fentanyl – a synthetic opioid considered up to 50 times more potent than heroin.

Washington – OSHA has changed its policy on allowing employees at non-union workplaces to choose a union-affiliated representative for “walkaround” inspections, according to an April 25 memo sent to regional administrators.

Silver Spring, MD – The Center for Construction Research and Training (also known as CPWR) has published 52 free toolbox talks on construction topics.

Portland, OR – Three preventable logging fatalities in Oregon have prompted a new set of discussion points for supervisors to share with their crews.

Portland, OR – The Oregon Occupational Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program has released new toolbox talks focusing on three fatal incidents.

Silver Spring, MD — The Center for Construction Research and Training, also known as CPWR, has released a series of toolbox talks on nanomaterials.

Washington — The COVID-19 pandemic understandably occupied much of a May 11 panel discussion that featured three OSHA experts presenting updates of agency activities, as part of the National Safety Council’s Impact Tracks webinar series.

Mission 500, a charitable nonprofit organization engaging security professionals to assist families in crisis across the USA, will announce the winners of its annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Humanitarian Awards at ISC West today, Thursday, March 30. The ceremony will take place at The Bridge Stage – Booth #25063 from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. 

Washington — The director of NIOSH’s Office for Total Worker Health says employers should think about the physical and mental health needs of their employees returning to the job amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Washington — As she approaches her second year as administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Robin Hutcheson sees an opportunity to better understand the “root cause” of crashes.

Washington — Demonstrating a commitment to worker safety, and getting a firsthand look at whether safety and health programs are working. These are two of the reasons business owners and managers should personally conduct periodic walkaround inspections, OSHA states in a recently released fact sheet.

Silver Spring, MD — A toolbox talk recently published by CPWR – The Center for Construction Research and Training features guidance on planning a safe lift with a crane.

Portland, OR — A recent study of residential construction supervisors in Oregon who received toolbox talks via text messages showed that their compliance with Oregon OSHA’s standard on safety meetings increased – and the delivery method was welcomed.

Each of these companies not only improved their 2021 RMR by double digit percentage points over 2020, but also moved several spots up on the SDM 100 ranking as a result. 

Arlington, VA – Mine Safety and Health Administration inspectors will be visiting mines to conduct “walk and talks” with miners and mine operators, the agency has announced.

Ascent Capital Group announced that its primary operating subsidiary, Monitronics International Inc., established a deal to acquire Security Networks for a total transaction price of $507.5 million.

Kee Walk with Guardrail is an OSHA-compliant rooftop walkway system with an integrated safety railing.

Washington — Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Administrator Raymond Martinez affirmed his belief in electronic logging devices, but said “additional flexibility” is forthcoming for agricultural transporters, during a May 22 hearing before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Highways and Transit Subcommittee.

A new tool developed for immigrant workers in Ontario is intended to help them adjust to the province's workplace safety rules, according to the Institute for Work & Health, a nonprofit research organization.

Lowell, MA – A new online toolkit aims to help employers integrate their health, safety and wellness programs.

A new online toolkit offers guidance on increasing flu vaccination coverage among workers in long-term health care facilities.

The National Roofing Contractors Association and roofing manufacturer GAF have teamed up to create a website intended to help roofing contractors keep their employers safe.

Washington – A new toolkit from OSHA and NIOSH aims to help protect health care workers from transmissible diseases and other respiratory hazards.

Liverpool, Nova Scotia – Small to medium-sized employers have a new online resource to help them create a safer workplace.

Silver Spring, MD — Stressing the importance of lightning awareness while working outdoors, the Center for Construction Research and Training – also known as CPWR – has published a hazard alert and toolbox talk addressing the topic.

Washington — OSHA is seeking to update the handrail and stair rail system requirements in its standard on walking-working surfaces for general industry.

Washington — Knowing how to select, use and maintain NIOSH-approved respirators can help promote proper respiratory protection practices and protect construction workers from unsafe airborne contaminants, according to a new toolbox talk published by the agency and CPWR – The Center for Construction Research and Training.

Morgantown, WV — Two potentially hazardous chemicals are missing from the Safety Data Sheets for bulk liquid flavorings, findings from a recent NIOSH Respiratory Health Division study show.

Washington — A new online toolkit from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is intended to assist safety professionals and health officials in assessing COVID-19 pandemic-related prevention and control measures at meat and poultry processing facilities.