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Current Safety

Record Attendance at 2018 Safety Picnic

Safety is not just one of our core values at O’Connell, it’s embedded into everything our employees do, every day, at home and at work. We are committed to our role as a leader for advancing safety practices at job sites and the culture within the electrical industry as a whole. This year we hosted our 6th annual safety picnic, bringing together our employees for a day to focus on becoming the safest electrical contractor in the nation. With over seven months of planning and commitment from our volunteer safety committee members, we were able to attract the largest participation for this event. More than 800 attended, including employees from our five office locations, guests, and vendors. The picnic was hosted at the Pinnacle Athletic Campus in Victor, NY, located minutes from our corporate headquarters. In the trade-show style event, vendors showcased improved tooling and equipment, technology, and safety supplies. Several guests provided demonstrations including Klein Tools, ADMAR, Dival Safety, Hilti, Milwaukee Tools, and Dewalt. Interacting directly through hands-on activities with the vendors allowed for an engaging and memorable learning experience. Along with vendor participation, we brought in a variety of guest speakers from National Grid, IBEW Local Unions, American Heart Association, and more, to relay important safety presentations to the group. Brad and Dolores Gardner shared their chilling story of Brad losing his arm in a near-death industrial accident. Even with Brad’s noticeable work ethic and reliability, he fell victim to the domino effect associated with the lack of workplace safety and situational awareness. His moving presentation was a strong reminder how critical safety is for each of us to go home to our families every day. Cheryl Dinolfo, Monroe County Executive, partook in the picnic briefly speaking about the positive impact O’Connell has on our local communities and introduced Monroe County Public Health Commissioner, Dr. Michael Mendoza, who discussed the spiraling opioid epidemic. He stressed how the deadly epidemic is a national crisis, and the importance of perceiving all the numbers and statistics we hear each week in the news as actual people, because this epidemic is affecting families across the nation. The more we work to create awareness on the topic and work to help each other, the better we can get a handle on the opioid problem that is plaguing our communities. Heart disease is our nation’s number one killer, causing 40% of all deaths. Denise McGraw, from the American Heart Association, provided information about living a long and healthy life. Through moderate exercise and a nutritious diet, heart disease and stroke can be prevented before it is too late. McGraw explained the signs of a heart attack and stroke to help O’Connell employees in future incidents that can be avoided or handled immediately. McGraw also introduced all of us to “Life’s Simple Seven”, a set of rules we can follow to start living healthier lives. The Field Safety Committee presented safety awards to employees who truly exemplified our core values. Recipients were chosen by the Field and Corporate Safety Committees after being nominated by their peers. Congratulations John Fox, General Foreman, LU 43 - Andy Schaffner, General Foreman, LU 43 - Adam Blum, Journeyman, LU 1249. The unbelievable amount of time, money, and resources that go into hosting our annual picnic has been well worth our efforts. Employees are more engaged with our safety programs, collaborate more on job sites, and even motivate our customers and sub-contractors to work more safely. For us, you just can’t put a price on that.

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