Nothing—not progress, not profit, not productivity is more important than safety. Nothing.
With this belief, we have created a safety program that goes beyond rules and regulations to encourage proactive safety participation in a culture that puts safety first. At FZ, this means caring about each other enough to hold one another to high safety standards. It also means doing everything in our power to protect, support, and empower our teams when it comes to safety.
Safety is an attitude, a very personal commitment, that is supported and reinforced by everyone at every opportunity. Part of providing a healthy and energizing work environment for our employees is ensuring that every FZer has access to the tools and resources they need to be successful. Our Health and Safety Program is reviewed on a yearly basis and is distributed to our employees and customers, so that every party knows our safety expectations.
Safety Cardinal Rules
We don't do hot work. We don't work on or near energized parts or components.
We lock out and tag out. Energy sources are locked out, tagged out, and tried out.
We use fall protection. Working at heights is one of the greatest risks in our industry. We always use fall protection.
We plan for confined spaces. Provisions made and conditions verified, all before we enter.
We wear PPE. We wear the right gear for the right job, even if it’s inconvenient. We wear safety glasses, gloves, and hard hats, and adhere to customer standards—100% of the time.
We buckle up. We buckle up—every person, every vehicle, every time—because safety extends beyond the immediate places we work.
We work clear headed. We show up to work clean and sober, ready to focus on the job at hand.
Safety Program
Below are a few aspects of our safety program.
Branch Committees
Every FZ branch has an employee-led Safety Committee that meets on a monthly basis to discuss, prepare, and plan for branch-specific and corporate-wide safety initiates. We've been purposeful in creating a diverse mix of people and positions to fill each safety committee, so that all groups are accurately represented. From these branch safety committees many intentional and powerful initiatives have been created and completed.
Safety Team
Our full time Safety Team works to uphold and exceed industry standards. Led by Brandi Didlott, our team visits job sites and assesses work, techniques, and working conditions. Safety coordination is overseen by each project's superintendent, a competent person, and is assisted by a member of the Safety Team.
Job Safety Analysis
Every day, field employees review and sign a Job Safety Analysis (JSA) to ensure that, as tasks change, they are aware of potential hazards on the jobsite.
Toolbox Talks
As an additional required asset of our safety program, weekly toolbox talks inform our teams of safety policies, hazards, or best practices. Safety coupons are distributed for attending; employees can turn these in for discounts on field gear.
Stop Work Authority Policy
All FZers have the authority and obligation to stop work of any task or operation that raises concerns or questions regarding immediate health and safety risk. Employees may exercise this right any time they are unsure of their work task risk, without recourse from any member of management, supervision, or other employees.
After work is stopped, the jobsite leader or supervisor is notified and the affected workers discuss corrective actions with the safety team.
