Contractor Safety Program

Construction is a high hazard industry that comprises a wide range of activities involving construction, alteration, and/or repair. They can include falling from rooftops, unguarded machinery, being struck by heavy construction equipment, electrocutions, silica dust, and asbestos, as well as exposure to chemicals, dust and solvents. Conversely, there is also the risk of these hazards "spilling over" to UTRGV personnel who are in the proximity of the construction site. The UTRGV Contractor Safety Program has been established to ensure the health and safety of the university faculty, staff, students and visitors who may be in proximity to renovation, demolition, installation, or maintenance operations performed by contractors or subcontractors.

Every contractor and their respective sub-contractors is expected to take steps, as necessary, to protect the safety and health of University faculty, staff, students and visitors during the performance of their work activities.

This program does not cover the legal responsibilities that contractors and subcontractors have regarding their own employees, but only the steps necessary to protect members of the campus community. Those responsibilities for ensuring that contractors comply with OSHA rules, regulations and best management practices applicable to the both the work site and the environment rest on the primary contractor.

Basic Program Elements

Project Manager Responsibilities

An UTRGV Project Manager is anyone who hires and/or manages a contractor to perform maintenance, repair, installation, renovation or construction-related operations on any UTRGV property.

The UTRGV Project Manager is expected to ensure that the Contractor is:

Informed of the presence of hazards in or near the work area;
Informed about UTRGV requirements identified in the Contractor Procedures Manual;
Trained by using the online Contractor Safety Training program; and
Aware of the university's expectations regarding safety compliance and the control of worksite hazards.

Contractor Responsibilities

All contractors are expected to comply with any and all rules, regulations and best management practices applicable to the Construction Site. The contractors are responsible for ensuring that sub-contractors do the same.

The successful contractor shall have a written health and safety program that outlines safe work practices and procedures expected to be followed by workers and shall have it available for review by the University’s project manager or by representatives of the EHSRM Department upon request. JOC contractors shall have obtained an OSHA 30-hour Construction Safety Outreach Training card within 5 years of the date of the applicable project. The contractor is solely responsible for insuring that all workers have received any required safety related training. Training documentation shall be made available for review upon request.

The successful contractor shall have a competent person or persons as defined by OSHA 29CFR1926.32(f) on the job site to monitor hazardous work activities such as, but not limited to, crane operations, electrical safety, excavations, fall protection, scaffolding and confined space entry.

The successful contractor shall have an up to date Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for all chemical products used on the job site. The SDSs shall be readily accessible to all project workers and to University staff on request. If the use of any chemical product has the potential for harmful exposure to UTRGV staff, faculty, students or visitors, the EHSRM office shall be notified and exposure controls will be discussed prior to the use of that chemical product.

Outside contractors shall manage all Hazardous Substances (as herein defined) used or generated on University property in accordance with all applicable federal and state laws and the University’s Hazardous Material Management Guide. “Hazardous Substance” is defined as any substance that is toxic, ignitable, reactive or corrosive or that is regulated by any local government, the State of Texas or the United States government. “Hazardous Substance” includes but is not restricted to asbestos, polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), and petroleum.

Routine Un-announced Inspections

Routine Un-announced inspections may be conducted by UTRGV EHSRM or the UTRGV Project Manager. These job site visits are conducted solely for the benefit of the university, and shall not relieve the contractor of responsibility for enforcement of, and compliance with the OSHA regulations.

In the event that work site conditions exist that potentially impact the safety of university faculty, staff, students and visitors, EHSRM shall inform the UTRGV Project Manager so that the workplace condition can be corrected in a timely manner. If the unsafe conditions cannot be immediately corrected and represents a danger or has the potential to harm university faculty, staff, students and visitors then the UTRGV Project Manager will:

Inform the contractor of unsafe conditions that were noted, and explain the potential impact upon university faculty, staff, students and visitors;
Instruct the contractor to either stop working or implement measures to isolate the hazardous condition until the unsafe condition can be mitigated; and
Issue a formal written report of the situation(s) to the contractor.

Contractor Security Requirements

All contractors and their respective subcontractors who will be on the UTRGV campuses(s) unattended are required to obtain a Criminal Background Check (CBC). The procedures for obtaining this background check are included in this document. The badge fee is $12.00.

UTRGV Contractor Criminal Background Check Policy

Contractor Parking Arrangements

Parking arrangements should be made with the Project Manager prior to the commencement of the construction project. In the majority of the cases, personnel will be required to purchase a parking pass in order to park in UTRGV campuses. Those contractors who perform a significant volume of work on the campus are encouraged to purchase annual parking pass.

UTRGV Parking and Transportation Services