FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Members of the Fredericksburg Area Builders Association to Join Builders Across the Country Pausing to Educate Workers on Coronavirus Safety
Fredericksburg, Virginia – April 14, 2020 – The Fredericksburg Builders Association (FABA), the Home Builders Association of Virginia (HBAV) and the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) are urging its members, and all residential construction companies, to pause work for at least 10 minutes on Thursday, April 16, to educate workers on ways to keep themselves safe from coronavirus and to help flatten the curve. The association has developed resources that include a blueprint for builders to conduct these COVID-19 safety stand downs.
The Stay at Home Order issued by Governor Northam permits professional businesses such as construction companies to continue working during the crisis. However, all builders and their vendors must adhere to social distancing recommendations, enhanced sanitation practices, limit job sites to less than 10 people, and apply workplace guidance documents from state and federal authorities. In addition, the Department of Homeland Security recently designated construction of single-family and multifamily housing as an “Essential Infrastructure Business.”
“HBAV has given builders the tools they need to educate themselves and their workers on how operate a jobsite that follows the guidelines outlined by Governor Northam and federal agencies,” said, FABA Member and HBAV President Dan Sandoval, owner of Republic Home Builders in Fredericksburg, Virginia. “Builders on construction sites across Virginia are altering their normal behavior and strictly following public health guidelines while at work.”
“Builders across Virginia will be participating in the national safety stand down,” added Craig Toalson, Chief Executive Officer of HBAV. “It is imperative that we keep our workers safe as they continue to build homes in our communities.”
As part of the safety stand down, members are being asked to pause all work for at least 10 minutes to relay coronavirus safety precautions, such as maintaining a distance of no less than six feet away from others at all times, cleaning and sanitizing frequently used tools, equipment, and frequently touched surfaces on a regular basis and ensuring the proper sanitation of common surfaces and equipment. The safety information has been distributed digitally to all FABA members.
NAHB and other construction industry partners have also developed a comprehensive Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Plan for Construction that outlines the steps every employer and employee should take to reduce the risk of exposure to and transmission of COVID-19. It describes how to prevent worker exposure to coronavirus, protective measures to be taken on the job site, personal protective equipment and work practice controls to be used, cleaning and disinfecting procedures and what to do if a worker becomes sick.
The Home Builders Association of Virginia has also distributed a quick-reference job site checklist for employers and employees and a job site safety poster—available in English and Spanish—that can be distributed throughout the workplace. These and other resources for members can be found here:
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ABOUT FABA: The Fredericksburg Area Builders Association represents builders, developers, building trade professionals, and many other local businesses who provide goods and services to support the building industry in the City of Fredericksburg and the counties of Caroline, King George, Orange, Spotsylvania and Stafford. With over 350 member companies, FABA represents nearly 10,000 employees who support the residential building industry within our service area.
ABOUT HBAV: The Home Builders Association of Virginia is a 3,000 member professional trade association based in Richmond, Virginia. HBAV servers the entire home building, remodeling, and land development industry. HBAV members are also members of Home Builders Association Federation that includes the National Association of Home Builders and 14 local Home Builders Associations in Virginia. HBAV works to accomplishes its mission to provide quality affordable housing to Virginians through advocacy, industry news and education, and membership events.
ABOUT NAHB: The National Association of Home Builders is a Washington-based trade association representing more than 140,000 members involved in home building, remodeling, multifamily construction, property management, subcontracting, design, housing finance, building product manufacturing and other aspects of residential and light commercial construction. NAHB is affiliated with 700 state and local home builder associations around the country. NAHB’s builder members will construct about 80 percent of the new housing units projected for this year.
Contact: Maria Moore
540-898-2730
mmoore@fabava.com
www.fabava.com
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