McCarthy Building Companies’ Houston Division was recently awarded the 2017 Diamond STEP (Safety Training and Evaluation Process) Award, by the Houston Chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC). The purpose of the award is to identify businesses who demonstrate commitment to jobsite safety and exhibit exemplary safety performance. Winning the Diamond STEP award automatically enters McCarthy into The ABC National Safety Excellence Award competition.

(L-R): Bob Rogers, Wendell Rychlik and Adeel Malik of McCarthy with Russell Hamley, ABC Greater Houston President

“Our quest for a zero-injury work environment isn’t just a priority. It’s a key tenet of our company,” said Wendell Rychlik, McCarthy’s Civil Division vice president, business development.“As a company, we are 76 percent below the national average for incident rates -and we’re constantly pushing to improve safety performance. By doing this, we directly support business results for our clients while improving operational excellence.”

ABC's STEP determines merit through 20 key components of safety and is judged by the ABC National Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S) Committee. Award categories are determined by data submitted via STEP applications and are based on a company's total work hours per calendar year and placement within the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS).

To qualify for the Diamond-level award, the company must show an incidence rate of at least 50 percent below the national Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) average for their specific NAICS code and maintain it for at least three uninterrupted years. They must also have an EMR (or "mod factor") at or below 0.700 (0.800 for companies with fewer than 100 employees).