Building a Safer Future in the Construction Industry: Construction Safety Week 2025

Construction Safety Week has continued to evolve and grow into a powerful movement, making the industry safer, but there is still room to improve. In 2023, the construction industry accounted for 1,075 workplace fatalities, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That number is something the industry is making every effort to reduce through education and resources. Organizations participating in Construction Safety Week are provided with tools to engage their teams and share best practices to improve job site safety. This is a great time to evaluate processes and prioritize impact, but committing to focusing on safety year-round is also essential.

Setting the Tone for Safety

Every person on a construction site plays a vital role in ensuring each job is completed safely, but the role of the foreman is crucial to all aspects of the job site. This includes managing productivity and ensuring a safe environment. With an intimate connection to the team members, the foreman is the direct link between the team members and leadership. They are the eyes and ears of the superintendent and are in a unique position to ensure that the work is completed timely, safely, and according to plan.

With this level of responsibility, the foreman needs an equal level of support from leadership and their team when facing challenges that can feel outside of their control. Predetermined timelines, complex projects, and employee skill sets are some of these factors that can create barriers to their success as leaders in the field. From the craft professionals to the foreman to the superintendents and other leadership in the organization, everyone shares responsibility for the safety and execution of the work.

Effective communication at every level of the team is critical, with the foreman serving as the central link. Empowering these individuals to manage their crews, maintain safety standards, and to communicate when they feel the plan needs to be adjusted or there is a safety risk is essential for ensuring safe outcomes. This also leads to deeper trust and respect within teams and demonstrates the value each team member brings to their collective success. Recognizing their role in making the right decisions helps them manage the team more effectively and plays an important role in industry safety.

Providing the Framework for Safety

In addition to various resources made available for companies to utilize during this week-long initiative, Construction Safety Week also provides a framework, empowering companies to guide meaningful conversations and activities centered around safety. A new campaign theme is introduced every year to focus the efforts of Construction Safety Week. This year’s theme is All in Together, which represents the industry’s collective dedication to safety. This theme is reinforced through Daily Topics assigned to each day of Safety Week to help engage teams in discussion and encourage open sharing of ideas. The 2025 Daily Topics emphasize the core components of this year’s theme: Plan, Own, and Commit.

On Monday, the focus of the day is to plan with precision, emphasizing the importance of starting every day with a well-thought-out plan that accounts for all aspects of every task. By identifying potential risks from the start, the team can help mitigate risks through active collaboration and communication.

Tuesday highlights identifying high energy hazards. While understanding that there is no way to eliminate all risks, focusing on eliminating these high-energy hazards can make a critical difference in safety on a job site.

Wednesday reinforces the notion that everyone owns their part when it comes to safety. This comprehensive approach, where everyone comes together and takes ownership, fosters a stronger safety culture.

Thursday, the focus shifts to engaging and empowering team members, creating a team committed to safety. By encouraging and empowering this commitment to safety, organizations build a culture of trust and mutual respect.

On Friday the week concludes with a call to commit to excellence. Together, we can create a safer and stronger industry for everyone through dedication and continuously striving to improve.

These topics are great assets for the company as a whole, but are guiding posts for the foreman as they lead on the job site.

How to get involved in Construction Safety Week 2025

This week-long campaign highlights resources to improve safety programs and promote safety across the company. Team members and leadership will gain access to resources that will enhance the safety culture in their organization. As the construction industry continues making strides in safety by investing time and resources toward education, companies continue to commit to safety initiatives like Construction Safety Week. By doing so, they are demonstrating that they are leaders in the industry. Construction Safety Week encourages organizations to commit to the safety movement in 2025 as sponsors, members, or advocates.

This year’s Safety Week takes place May 5-9, 2025. Learn more about Construction Safety Week 2025, how our safety initiatives can help your team recommit to safety for the year, and how to get involved by visiting www.constructionsafetyweek.com.   

Construction Safety Week is an annual event designed to raise the awareness of the industry’s ongoing commitment to building a culture of safety through sharing best practices, tools, and resources at job sites and offices across the U.S. and Canada. Safety Week was founded in 2014 by members of The Construction Industry Safety Initiative (CISI) and the Incident & Injury Free Executive Forum (IIF) and now includes 70 of the top contractors in the industry, representing thousands of workers. Additional support comes from Safety Week sponsors, partners, and advocates.

Michael (Mike) J. Choutka (Hood-Key) joined Hensel Phelps in 1991 and is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Management Engineering. As Chairman and CEO, Mike is responsible for providing strategic leadership for the enterprise by working with the board of directors and the executive management team to establish long-range goals, strategies, plans, and policies. He is also charged with advancing employee engagement and overseeing all operations and business activities to ensure they produce the desired results consistent with Hensel Phelps’ overall strategy and mission.

Mike is committed to improving safety and driving positive industry change. Under his leadership, Hensel Phelps implemented the Craft Awareness and Recognition in Safety (CARES) Program in 2020. In 2021, Mike received the “CEOs Who ‘Get It’” award from Safety+Health Magazine, acknowledging his commitment to workplace safety. His leadership has also led to Hensel Phelps earning multiple national safety awards, reinforcing the company’s commitment to a zero-accident culture. Recent accolades include the 2023 AGC Construction Safety Excellence Grand Award, the 2023 ABC National Safety Excellence Award, the 2024 ABC National Safety Pinnacle Award, and the 2024 AGC Construction Safety Excellence Award for outstanding safety performance and risk management. He is currently serving as the 2025 Chair of Construction Safety Week.