On Oct. 30, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) renewed its Electrical Transmission and Distribution (ET&D) Partnership with industry stakeholders for another five years.

The partnership is a formal collaboration of industry stakeholders working together to improve worker safety in the high-voltage electric line construction industry. Impacting the majority of workers in the industry, it is the only national partnership between employers, industry associations, and OSHA.

The partnership develops and implements best practices and industry-specific courses that directly correspond with key hazards and operations that are associated with injuries, illnesses and fatalities in the industry.

"Through this long-term partnership, OSHA and ET&D have made a positive impact related to the safety and health of more than 2 million electrical workers," said Loren Sweatt, Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health. "Most importantly, this partnership is identifying and addressing hazards that lead to injuries and fatalities among electrical workers."

As the partnership has expanded since its creation in 2004, it has achieved a number of goals, including reducing the number of industry fatalities; providing an ET&D industry-specific OSHA training course for line workers, industry supervisors and other leadership; developing 14 best practices to reduce the frequency of hazardous incidents; establishing a national Electrical Safety Stand Down; and creating a safety video and mobile app that feature best practices, industry updates and other topics.

"With this renewed agreement, we will continue to develop and implement training resources that promote safe and healthful working conditions," Sweatt said.

Members of the ET&D Partnership include the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), Michels Corp. and MYR Group.