When two Black construction apprentices found a noose tied over a beam on their jobsite in Edmonds, Wash., Pastor Lawrence Willis became determined to make sure an incident like this never happened again.

An effective risk management plan can make all the difference in whether a contractor thrives, survives – or fails. At no time in recent history has this been more critical than now as the country slogs through the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 amplified stress, anxiety and uncertainty, which has created major disruptions at work and home. As stress levels intensified, alcohol and substance use are reportedly rising significantly.

An unprecedented global pandemic, civil unrest, record-level partisanship and the most polarizing president in American history will all factor big when Americans head to the polls in November.

Like many businesses, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacted a heavy toll on the construction industry, upending many commercial projects that have caused financial hardship for scores of companies, their employees and subcontractors this year.

With the coronavirus pandemic worsening drastically this summer, executives at Suffolk Construction, an AGC of New York State LLC and Rhode Island Chapter-AGC member, figure it’s only a matter of time before a worker shows up sick to one of its many jobsites across the country. But for COVID-19 to spread at one of those sites, it will have to jump through more hoops than a circus tiger.

As I write this column, coronavirus case numbers continue to spike in many parts of the country.

We’re looking forward to Construction Safety Week, which has been rescheduled for September 14-18, following a delay from our traditional May dates. We hope you all have plans to join us.

The importance of safety when working from heights cannot be emphasized enough.

COVID-19 protocols include contactless drive-up service and pre-rental and last-touch disinfecting.