William E. Groves Construction in Madisonville Presented Governor’s Safety and Health Award

MADISONVILLE, Ky. (June 15, 2018) – Labor Cabinet Deputy Secretary Mike Nemes visited William E. Groves Construction in Madisonville today to present a Governor’s Safety and Health Award for the 1,195,042 production hours worked without a lost-time incident by employees.    

“On behalf of Governor Bevin and the Labor Cabinet, I want to congratulate William E. Groves Construction on this remarkable achievement,” Labor Secretary David Dickerson stated. “Promoting workplace safety across the Commonwealth is my number one priority, and the people and processes in place at Groves Construction make it easy to showcase their success as an example for other businesses to follow. Working over a million hours without a major incident is an important milestone and you should be proud of this stellar safety record.”

William E. Groves was employed by the Kentucky Utilities Corporation for over 20 years and worked as a lineman and superintendent performing line construction and service work in the western Kentucky district. He founded William E. Groves Construction, Inc. in 1972 and began his work predominately as a power line contractor.

Over the years, Groves Construction has developed into a diversified electrical contractor with the ability to perform all types of electrical work and maintenance. Headquartered in Madisonville, Groves Construction employs over 300 people and services clients throughout Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, and Tennessee.

“Groves Construction puts the safety of our employees above all other management objectives, which has contributed to Groves having one of the best safety records in the industry,” V.P. of Operations John Mark Morris said. “We are constantly reviewing our best practices and searching for innovative ways to protect our employees from seen and unforeseen hazards in the workplace. This award represents all of the hard work and dedication contributed by every single member of the Groves team to strive for excellence and keeping safety first.”

Sen. C.B. Embry Jr., of Morgantown, offered his praise.

“We are always proud to see one of our local companies put such an emphasis on the health and safety of its employees,” Sen. Embry said. “I commend William E. Groves Construction for its incredible commitment to a thriving workplace environment, and I appreciate the Labor Cabinet’s recognition of a valued employer here in Hopkins County.”

Rep. Melinda Gibbons Prunty, of Belton, expressed the importance of teamwork to achieve workplace safety.

“This award presented to Groves Construction shows what can be accomplished when a company and its employees work together toward a common goal," Rep. Prunty said. “Congratulations for the amazing accomplishment of working over a million consecutive hours without a lost-time injury or illness and proving the worthiness of this recognition."

The Kentucky Labor Cabinet presents the Governor’s Safety and Health Award to highlight outstanding safety and health performance in Kentucky’s workplaces. A business may qualify for the award if its employees achieve a required number of hours worked without experiencing a lost-time injury or illness. The required number of hours is dependent upon the number of employees.  

According to a recent report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Kentucky employers reported the lowest incident rate for nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses in the state’s history.

Based on a mathematical calculation that describes the number of recordable incidents per 100 full-time employees, Kentucky’s rate improved from 3.7 in 2015 to 3.4 in 2016, reflecting the latest available data. This rate has steadily declined since it was first calculated in 1996, when a rate of 8.4 was reported.

For more information on the Governor’s Safety and Health Award, click here.

Follow the Kentucky Labor Cabinet on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest updates.

Additional information is available at http://labor.kentucky.gov.

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