The OSHA and SMACNA Alliance focuses on providing the organization's members and others in the sheet metal and air conditioning and the construction contracting industries, including Hispanic workers and small businesses, with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help protect employees' health and safety. The Alliance will address issues such as motor vehicle safety, fall protection, and personal protective equipment with an emphasis on cuts and eye injuries. The Alliance's goals include:

• Work with OSHA to provide expertise to develop training and education programs for supervisors and employees on motor vehicle safety, fall protection and personal protective equipment, with an emphasis on the prevention of eye injuries and cuts and to provide expertise in communicating such information to employers and employees in the industry.
• Apprenticeship programs lasting 4 or 5 years are considered the best training.
• Job opportunities in construction should be good.

Sheet metal workers usually work a 40-hour week. Those who fabricate sheet metal products work in shops that are well-lighted and well-ventilated. However, they stand for long periods and lift heavy materials and finished pieces. Sheet metal workers must follow safety practices because working around high-speed machines can be dangerous. They also are subject to cuts from sharp metal, burns from soldering and welding, and falls from ladders and scaffolds. They are often required to wear safety glasses and must not wear jewelry or loose-fitting clothing that could easily be caught in a machine. They may work at a variety of different production stations to reduce the repetitiveness of the work.

Those performing installation work do considerable bending, lifting, standing, climbing, and squatting, sometimes in close quarters or in awkward positions. Although duct systems and kitchen equipment are installed indoors, the installation of siding, roofs, and gutters involves much outdoor work, requiring sheet metal workers to be exposed to various kinds of weather.