The rules for bidding and staffing public construction work in Philadelphia changed in 2026. Starting July 1, Philadelphia Code Bill No. 250607 requires that contractors and subcontractors on city public works projects of $300,000 or more (with more than four on-site workers) ensure at least 70% of the on-site workforce are enrolled in or graduates of Commonwealth-registered apprenticeship programs. Failure to meet that threshold makes the contractor “not responsible” and disqualifies bids.
That requirement sits on top of existing pressure: prevailing wage laws with updated wage rates effective May 26, 2026; supervisor OSHA 30 certification mandates; OSHA 10 cards required on site for all workers; federal labor standards; and project labor agreements that surface periodically on institutional and public work. For every merit shop contractor in Eastern Pennsylvania, these layered obligations and regulations raise the cost of a missed detail.
The ABC STEP program, ABC’s national safety management system established in 1989, gives contractors a structured, documented, and essential way to demonstrate safety credibility in this environment. STEP serves as a benchmarking tool that enables companies to measure safety performance against national averages. For firms competing in Philadelphia, the suburban collar counties (Montgomery, Bucks, Chester, Delaware), the Lehigh Valley, and Northeast Pennsylvania, that documented performance record strengthens prequalification packages, builds confidence with project owners, and supports bid competitiveness in one of America’s most union-dense construction markets.
Owners and general contractors evaluating bids in the Philadelphia market increasingly look beyond price. Prequalification documents now ask for apprenticeship enrollment proof, OSHA training certificates, incident rate data, and evidence of a functioning safety management system. The ABC Step program produces exactly that kind of documentation.
STEP provides measurable safety data, including tracked safety measures, not self-reported checklists. The evaluation process asks companies to score more than 25 key components across the leadership, culture, and safety systems that shape safety processes and total human health. Each component is weighted, and the resulting self-assessment scores benchmark a firm against industry peers in the same NAICS code, using Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR), Experience Modification Rate (EMR), and OSHA/BLS national averages.
For merit shop firms competing against union contractors with built-in apprenticeship and training pipelines, that documented competitive safety performance levels the playing field. When a bid package requires proof of training, workforce development, and incident tracking, a STEP-recognized firm can produce those records immediately. That readiness reduces compliance risk when workforce-training and apprenticeship expectations intensify on Philadelphia-area public and institutional projects.
The program works because it connects leading indicators (toolbox talks, behavior-based safety observations, near-miss reports, incident investigation, employee participation) to lagging indicators (TRIR, EMR, DART) to help firms improve safety performance. Contractors who already run daily safety meetings and maintain drug-and-alcohol-free workplace policies can map those existing practices into STEP’s framework without building a parallel system.
The STEP self-assessment takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. Companies submit data online, including OSHA Form 300A, EMR, NAICS code, annual volume, and insurance information. Contractors must use prior-year OSHA data for the application.
Involving safety committees and field supervisors in the assessment produces a more accurate picture than a single office-based review. The goal is to identify gaps in current safety processes and establish a baseline for measuring safety data year over year. Confidentiality is maintained for all submitted STEP assessment data; only aggregated national trends are published.
STEP is a no-cost framework for measuring safety data. The STEP program is free for all ABC members and non-members for online submissions.
Six core leading indicators form the foundation of high-performing safety programs within the STEP framework:
The STEP program encourages proactive safety practices to prevent accidents before they occur. These leading indicators also support workforce stability: crews that work on safer job sites stay longer, reducing labor constraints that affect project schedules.
STEP has six levels of achievement: Participant, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Participants can achieve recognition at six levels based on performance. Each level requires progressively better assessment scores and lower incident rates relative to BLS national averages. To reach Gold, Platinum, or Diamond, firms with 10 or more employees must submit OSHA 300A data, and incidence rates for the two most recent years must fall at or below the national BLS average for their NAICS code. Smaller firms use three-year or five-year averages.
Gold, Platinum, and Diamond levels signal superior safety performance. The program offers companies opportunities to earn national recognition through safety excellence awards, and firms at those top levels may qualify for ABC’s National Health and Safety Excellence Award or the AQC credential. Higher STEP recognition levels improve bidding competitiveness by giving project owners third-party validated safety performance data. Participants can track progress and implement improvements annually through the STEP process, set quarterly improvement goals, and benchmark against merit shop peers to continuously improve.
Most safety audits tell a contractor what they lack. STEP tells a contractor what works and where to improve to lower incident rates. The difference is measurable outcomes versus compliance checklists.
STEP is a no-cost safety management system for contractors, unlike many third-party safety consulting programs that charge annual fees. That accessibility makes STEP participation practical for small and mid-size firms across Eastern Pennsylvania.
The 2026 ABC Health and Safety Performance Report, built from over 1.3 billion work hours reported in 2025, provides the clearest evidence that the STEP program works.
Top-performing STEP participants achieved an 85% reduction in TRIR compared with BLS construction industry averages. STEP participants report an 85% reduction in Total Recordable Incident Rate. Put differently, top-performing STEP participants are 688% safer than the industry average. In 2025, STEP participants were 384% safer than the industry average. As a regional comparison, 39 Ohio Valley companies completed the STEP assessment in 2025, and collectively their incident rates confirmed the national trend.
Those numbers translate to real cost and competitiveness advantages. Lower TRIR and EMR reduce workers’ compensation premiums during insurance renewals. A firm with Diamond or Platinum recognition can present that safety performance report to bonding agents and insurance underwriters as evidence of lower risk. For Eastern Pennsylvania contractors competing on prevailing wage and institutional projects, those documented metrics add weight to prequalification packages that ask for safety history, training records, and workforce development evidence.
ABC members who reach the performers lists at Gold, Platinum, or Diamond levels also gain visibility through construction awards and national recognition, reinforcing their reputation with clients and general contractors across the tri-market region.
The STEP framework applies to every contractor and supplier in the ABC Eastern Pennsylvania footprint:
Effective workforce development improves safety performance in construction. Firms that combine STEP participation with registered apprenticeship enrollment (construction apprenticeships combine on-the-job training with classroom instruction, lasting from one to five years, and lead to industry-recognized credentials) present stronger, essential qualification profiles in Eastern Pennsylvania’s current procurement environment.
Philadelphia’s July 2026 apprenticeship ordinance is the highest-profile change, but it compounds existing requirements that contractors must track at the same time.
Workforce-training and apprenticeship thresholds. The 70% apprenticeship workforce requirement on eligible city public works contracts means a contractor must verify enrollment or graduation status for most on-site workers before mobilization. Subcontractors face the same requirement, and a prime contractor whose subcontractors fail the threshold risks being deemed “not responsible.” Workforce development initiatives that focus on enhancing construction skills are no longer optional for firms pursuing city work.
Prevailing wage compliance. Updated wage rates took effect May 26, 2026, with defined basic hourly rates and fringe benefits for each trade. For example, Journeyman Electrician rates are set at $75.05 basic plus $48.19 fringe, with scheduled increases in 2027 and 2028. Contractors must anticipate these cost changes during estimating and track wages, fringe obligations, and compliance through payroll documentation that aligns with safety and training records.
Project labor agreement terms. PLAs surface on some institutional and public projects in Eastern Pennsylvania. Merit shop firms must examine bid documents closely for PLA participation terms, labor compliance requirements, apprenticeship obligations, and the scope of covered work that may extend to subcontractor duties. Treating PLA language as a staffing and cost variable during estimating, rather than discovering it after bid submission, prevents margin erosion and compliance exposure.
Responsible Contractor Ordinance dynamics. Although the Colonial School District RCO was rescinded in 2021, similar standards continue to emerge in suburban municipalities and school districts. These ordinances impose contractor qualification criteria covering licensing, insurance, safety history, and apprenticeship participation, all areas where STEP recognition provides documented evidence.
Spillover beyond Philadelphia. Collar counties and Lehigh Valley municipalities increasingly look to Philadelphia’s approach. Firms operating across multiple jurisdictions benefit from a unified safety documentation system (STEP, OSHA 10/30 certificates, apprenticeship records, insurance, EMR, OSHA 300A, TRIR/DART data) rather than assembling different packages for each market.
Before committing to a project in the current Philadelphia-area environment, apply this review process:
Below are answers to common questions about this topic.
The online self-assessment takes approximately 30 minutes. Recognition processing depends on the completeness of submitted data (OSHA 300A, EMR, safety program documentation). Firms with organized records can move through the evaluation process within a few weeks.
Yes. Prequalification packages for public and institutional work increasingly ask for documented safety culture, incident rate data, and training records. A STEP recognition level provides third-party validated evidence of a functioning safety program, which strengthens your response to those requirements.
In most cases, yes. Contractors who already conduct toolbox talks, maintain OSHA logs, run drug-and-alcohol-free workplace policies, and track incidents can implement STEP by formalizing and documenting existing practices. The STEP framework maps to what many firms already do.
Prevailing wage projects often carry additional prequalification scrutiny. Documented safety performance, lower EMR, and recognized STEP levels (Gold, Platinum, Diamond) provide measurable evidence that distinguishes your firm from competitors who cannot produce equivalent data. That distinction also supports favorable terms during insurance renewals and bonding discussions.
Expectations vary by project type and owner. For public works projects in Philadelphia, any STEP recognition above Participant demonstrates commitment. Gold and above signal mature safety programs. As more municipalities adopt responsible contractor criteria, expect the baseline expectation to rise.
Yes. STEP is open to contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers regardless of company size. The STEP program is designed for construction contractors of all sizes, and subcontractor participation strengthens the entire project team’s safety profile during prequalification.
Philadelphia’s 2026 regulatory environment rewards contractors who can document safety performance, workforce training, and apprenticeship compliance before bid day. The ABC STEP program gives merit shop firms a straightforward path to that documentation.
STEP participation is free for ABC members and non-members. The assessment is confidential, takes about 30 minutes to complete, and provides a clear improvement path through six recognition levels.
ABC Eastern Pennsylvania’s safety staff can help you prepare for the assessment, connect your existing safety data to STEP’s key components, and identify where your firm stands relative to the recognition levels that strengthen bids and prequalification packages. The chapter’s safety consulting services, ABC-OSHA Partnership, and registered apprenticeship programs across ten trade areas provide the broader support system that turns STEP recognition into sustained competitive performance.
