ESA South Earns ABC STEP Diamond Level Certification for Second Consecutive Year

ESA South is proud to announce that we have achieved Diamond level in Associated Builders and Contractors’ STEP^® Health and Safety Management System for the second consecutive year. STEP enables top-performing ABC members like ESA South to achieve incident rates 658% safer than the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics construction industry average, reducing total recordable incident rates by 85%.

“At ESA South, safety is not a program we follow,” said Cody France, ESA South Vice President of Safety. “It's a value that drives every decision we make. Earning ABC STEP Diamond recognition for the second consecutive year reflects the commitment of our employees, field teams and leaders who work every day to identify risks, plan work safely, and look out for one another. Our goal is simple: every employee goes home safely at the end of every day, and we will continue investing in the training, accountability and culture needed to make that happen.”

The real-world impacts of STEP are based on the findings in ABC’s 2025 Health and Safety Performance Report, an annual guide to construction jobsite health and safety best practices. Established in 1989, STEP provides contractors and suppliers with a robust, no-cost framework for measuring health and safety data and benchmarking with peers in the industry.

“STEP will help any contractor or supplier reinforce their commitment to the well-being of their workforce,” said Greg Sizemore, ABC Vice President of Health, Safety, Environment and Workforce Development. “If we choose to lead, if we choose to commit and if we choose to transform, together we can ensure every construction worker goes home safer, happier, healthier and more fulfilled every single day.

“Transforming the status quo to set the expectation that all incidents are preventable creates a culture where health and safety are elevated to core values, a moral obligation for employers and employees,” said Sizemore. “Priorities change frequently, but values remain consistent. The tools in STEP, as detailed in ABC’s annual safety report, show the blueprint of how industry leaders and workers like those at ESA South create a culture of health and safety and win and deliver work to communities without incident.”

STEP participants measure their safety processes and policies on key components and the criteria for best practices through a detailed questionnaire, with the goal of implementing or enhancing safety programs that reduce jobsite incident rates. 

ESA South's safety program is built on proactive planning, continuous improvement and employee engagement. Key safety initiatives include comprehensive employee training, pre-task hazard analysis, daily safety communication, leadership involvement in jobsite safety, routine inspections and audits, and a commitment to empowering every employee with stop-work authority when unsafe conditions are identified. These efforts support a culture where safety is integrated into every phase of project delivery and every level of the organization. ESA South is also proud to hold ABC's Accredited Quality Contractor (AQC) credential, recognizing the company's commitment to excellence in safety, quality, workforce development and ethical business practices.