Climbing the Ladder to Success, Safely

February 27, 2024|Construction, Safety

Ladder Safety Month is in March but safety training is available online all year long

By Susan Orenga, Contributor

When used properly, ladders are safe, useful tools, but improper use puts climbers at risk.

There are a host of statistics that paint a picture of why ladder safety training is so necessary. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ladder deaths accounted for 161 on-the-job fatalities in 2020, the most recent year for which statistics are available. That same year, there were 22,710 ladder-related workplace injuries, an injury stat that has remained relatively constant over the previous several years.¹ Also, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that every year more than 500,000 people are treated for ladder-related injuries (this includes people injured at home).²

More recently, according to OSHA’s Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards released in October 2023, improper ladder use on construction sites was the third-most cited safety violation.³

It’s clear ladder safety is a serious topic. Ladders are safe, useful tools when they are used properly. However, careless or improper use puts climbers at risk. Proper training and continuous adherence to correct usage standards can prevent ladder-related falls and accidents.

The American Ladder Institute (ALI) is a not-for-profit association dedicated to promoting safe ladder use. ALI was founded in 1947 and is the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)-approved developer of ladder safety standards. These are the technical specifications, developed and tested by subject experts, which prescribe rules governing the safe design, testing, care and use of various types of ladders.

ALI believes ladder accidents are preventable with thorough safety planning, training, and continuous innovation in product design. The more people, organizations, and businesses that get involved, the wider the message spreads, and the more people learn about proper ladder safety.

Ladder Safety Month

The organization’s signature initiative is National Ladder Safety Month, observed every March. It is the only movement dedicated exclusively to the promotion of ladder safety, at home and at work. These four weeks each year allow ALI to take deep dives into different aspects of ladder safety, narrowing in tightly on one topic each week, to promote safety tips and training.

In the belief that every life saved is precious, Ladder Safety Month pursues the following goals:

Decrease the number of ladder-related injuries and fatalities
Lower the rankings of ladder-related safety citations on OSHA’s yearly list
Increase the number of companies and individuals that inspect and properly dispose of old or damaged ladders
Increase the number of ladder safety training certificates issued by ALI
Increase the number of in-person ladder trainings
Increase the frequency that ladder safety training modules are viewed on ALI’s Ladder Safety Training site (laddersafetytraining.org)

While Ladder Safety Month provides an important opportunity to increase awareness and application of ladder safety, this is a topic that demands a year-round focus.

Year-Round Safety Training

Ladder accidents are preventable with thorough safety planning, training, and continuous innovation in product design.

ALI’s Ladder Safety Training site (laddersafetytraining.org) provides an organized curriculum, accompanied by video and resource libraries, that makes safety training easy all year long. The site and its related training are completely free.

Training courses are designed to seamlessly complement and integrate with an organization’s existing training program. Managers can choose as much or as little as they require; use the entire program wholesale or select a la carte to bolster gaps in existing training.

After signing up, trainers and training managers can develop a custom dashboard, called a Trainer’s Toolbox, in which they select training and testing, assign them to trainees, and monitor trainee performance and progress on the assignments. These dashboards can track everything from a handful of trainees for smaller organizations all the way up to hundreds for larger enterprises.

The Toolbox is designed for ultimate flexibility and ease of use. Topics covered include single and extension, articulated, mobile, and stepladders. Training is available in English or Spanish.

Taking training on laddersafetytraining.org does not require an invitation from a trainer. Anyone who wishes to enhance their awareness of ladder safety can sign up, take training, and be tested. And, obviously, training is available 24/7/365 – not only during Ladder Safety Month.