Construction Lives Matter

  Construction has been deemed as an essential job in the majority of our country. Construction workers are the backbone of our nations growth and economy. I have to started this petition to advocate for the safety and protection of ALL those construction workers who still show up to their jobsites every single day.

  For example, in Nashville alone, there are around 200 major construction sites currently underway. These jobsites have 200+ workers performing various trades every single day. That adds up to thousands of workers in the construction industry that commute from various counties and return home to those various counties daily. It is a FACT that there have already been workers infected by Covid19 on various jobsites within Nashville. Those infected jobsites are not being shut down for the adequate amount of time to ensure total disinfection of this virus. The coworkers that have worked on these sites where positive infection has occurred, are not being tested and sometimes are even unaware that there is infection on their jobsite. If a jobsite is temporarily shut down due to infection, the remaining workers are sometimes sent to various other jobsites (without prior testing).

  While we expected that essential workers would be at risk of infection, our response to those infections are crucial. There must be tests performed on ALL workers who have worked with or on the same project as the infected worker(s). Those who have worked in close contact with an infected worker should be quarantined for the the two week mandated period. They must be given the ability to perform the required social distancing recommendations. They must be provided access to sanitizer/wash stations.  They must be provided protective gear. Especially on the enclosed jobsites where social distancing is not possible. They must be informed when infection occurs on their jobsites. Infected jobsites should be shut down for no less than two weeks to ensure the spread of this virus does not continue. Shutting down a floor or two is not enough response.

  If a subcontracting company feels that leaving their workers on an infected jobsite is putting their crews at high risk, that company should not have to fear being replaced by another subcontracting company. The safety of their workers is of the utmost importance and deciding to protect them should be commended, not punished. The contracts they won in the bidding process should be honored. Our subcontracting companies as well as our general contracting companies need to have set federal and state mandates to follow during this pandemic.

  Our construction workers deserve protection. Their safety is crucial to combat the spread of Covid19 within the construction community and within the communities they return home to every day.