Roofer


A roofer, roof mechanic, or roofing contractor is a tradesman who specializes in roof construction. Roofers replace, repair, and install the roofs of buildings, using a variety of materials, including shingles, single-ply, bitumen, and metal. Roofing work includes the hoisting, storage, application, and removal of roofing materials and equipment, including related insulation, sheet metal, vapor barrier work, and green technologies rooftop jobs such as vegetative roofs, rainwater harvesting systems, and photovoltaic products, such as solar shingles and solar tiles.
Roofing work can be physically demanding because it may involve heavy lifting, climbing, bending, and kneeling, often in extreme weather conditions. Roofers are also vulnerable to falls from heights due to working at elevated heights. Various protective measures are required in many countries. In the United States these requirement are established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to address this concern. Several resources from occupational health agencies are available on implementing the required and other recommended interventions.

Global usage

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, as of 2022, there were 129,300 individuals working as roofers in the construction industry. Among that population, a majority of roofers were contractors for Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior projects. In terms of jobs outlook, it is predicted that there will only be a 2% increase in job growth from 2022 to 2032 in the United States. Approximately 12,200 openings are expected each year in this decade. Most of the new jobs are likely to be offered to replace roofers who retire or transition out of the trade.
In Australia, this type of carpenter is called a roof carpenter and the term roofer refers to someone who installs the roof cladding. The number of roofers in Australia was estimated to be approximately 15,000. New South Wales is the largest province with an 29% market share in the Australian Roofers industry. Second is Victoria with 3,206 Roofers.
In the United States and Canada, they're often referred to as roofing contractors or roofing professionals. The most common roofing material in the United States is asphalt shingles. In the past, 3-tab shingles were used, but recent trends show "architectural" or "dimensional" shingles becoming very popular.
Depending on the region, other commonly applied roofing materials installed by roofers include concrete tiles, clay tiles, natural or synthetic slate, single-ply, rubber shingles, glass, metal panels or shingles, wood shakes or shingles, liquid-applied, hot asphalt/rubber, foam, thatch, and solar tiles. "Living roof" systems, or rooftop landscapes, have become increasingly common in recent years in both residential and commercial applications.

Roles, responsibilities, and tasks

Roles and responsibilities of roofing professionals include:
  • Assessing the roof system and components
  • Determining the proper roofing system for the building
  • Installing roof system components according to manufacturer’s specifications
  • Repairing the roof system
  • Maintenance of the roof system
Beyond having common duties such as replacing, repairing, or installing roofs for buildings, roofers can also be involved in other tasks, including but is not limited to:
  • Seal exposed heads of nails or screws using roofing cement or caulk to avert possible water infiltration
  • Tailor roofing materials to accommodate architectural elements such as walls or vents
  • Align the installed materials with the roof's edges to ensure a proper fit
  • Apply various roofing materials such as shingles, asphalt, metal, etc., to render the roof impervious to weather conditions
  • Establish roof ventilation mechanisms to regulate airflow and control temperature fluctuations
  • Set up moisture barriers or insulation layers to improve the roof's thermal performance
  • Dismantle the current roof systems to make ways for repairs or new installations
  • Substitute impaired or decaying joists or plywood to maintain the roof's structural integrity
  • Assess roof dimensions to assess the necessary amount of required materials
  • Conduct evaluations on problematic roofs to determine the most effective repair approach

    Hazards

Roofing is one of the most dangerous professions among construction occupations since it involves working at heights and exposes workers to dangerous weather conditions such as extreme heat. In the United States as of 2017, the rate of fatalities from falls among roofers is 36 deaths per 100,000 full-time employees, ten times greater than all construction-related professions combined. In the United States, the fatal injury rate in 2021 was 59.0 per 100,000 full-time roofers, compared to the national average of 3.6 per 100,000 full-time employees. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, roofing has been within the top 5 highest death rates of any profession for over 10 years in a row. For Hispanic roofers, data from 2001–2008 show fatal injuries from falls account for nearly 80% of deaths in this population, the highest cause of death among Hispanics of any construction trade.
A major contributing factor to the high fatality rates among roofers in the United States is the nature of the craft which requires roofers to work on elevated, slanted roof surfaces. Findings from qualitative interviews with Michigan roofing contractors also found hand and finger injuries from handling heavy material and back injuries to be some of the more common task/injury combinations.
Ladder falls contribute to the rates of injury and mortality. More than half a million people per year are treated for fall from ladder and over 3000 people die as a result. In 2014 the estimated cost annual cost of ladder injuries, including time away from work, medical, legal, liability expenses was estimated to reach $24 billion. Male, Hispanic, older, self-employed workers and those who work in smaller establishments, and work doing construction, maintenance, and repair experience higher ladder fall injury rates when compared with women and non-Hispanic whites and persons of other races/ethnicities.
Ladders allow for roofers to access upper level work surfaces. For safe use, ladder must be inspected for damage by a competent person and must be used on stable and level surfaces unless they are secured to prevent displacement.

Safety measures

Nearly every industrialized country has established specific safety regulations for work on the roof, ranging from the use of conventional fall protection systems including personal fall arrest systems, guardrail systems, and safety nets.
The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work describes scenarios of risk, precautions, training needed and European legislation focused on roof work. European directives set minimum standards for health and safety and are transposed into law in all Member States.
In the United States, OSHA standards require employers to have several means of fall protection available to ensure the safety of workers. In construction, this applies to workers who are exposed to falls of 6 feet or more above lower levels. In the United States, regulation of the roofing trade is left up to individual states. Some states leave roofing regulation up to city-level, county-level, and municipal-level jurisdictions. Unlicensed contracting of projects worth over a set threshold may result in stiff fines or even time in prison. In some states, roofers are required to meet insurance and roofing license guidelines. Roofers are also required to display their license number on their marketing material.
Canada's rules are very similar to those from the U.S., and regulatory authority depends on where the business is located and fall under the authority of their local province.
In 2009, in response to high rates of falls in constructions the Japanese Occupational Safety and Health Regulations and Guidelines amended their specific regulations. In 2013 compliance was low and the need for further research and countermeasures for preventing falls and ensuring fall protection from heights was identified.
The United Kingdom has no legislation in place that requires a roofer to have a license to trade, although some do belong to recognized trade organizations.

Personal fall arrest system (PFAS)

The purpose of a PFAS is to halt a fall and prevent the worker from making bodily contact with a surface below. The PFAS consists of an anchorage, connectors, body harness and may include a lanyard, deceleration device, lifeline or suitable combination of these.
Beyond these mandatory components of the PFAS, there are also specific fall distances associated with the functioning of the arrest system. Specifically, there is a total fall distance that the PFAS must allow for to assist the worker in avoiding contact with the ground or other surface below. The total fall distance consists of free fall distance, deceleration distance, D-ring shift, Back D-ring height, and Safety margin. In addition to the fall distance requirements for each component of the PFAS, the anchorage of the PFAS must also be able to support a minimum 5,000 pounds per worker.
OSHA regulations have several requirements. The free fall distance, to the distance that the worker drops before the PFAS begins to work and slows the speed of the fall, must be 6 feet or less, nor contact any lower level. The deceleration, the length that the lanyard must stretch in order to arrest the fall must be no more than 3.5 feet. The D-ring shift, the distance that the harness stretches and how far the D-ring itself moves when it encounters the full weight of the worker during a fall, is generally assumed to be 1 foot, depending on the equipment design and the manufacturer of the harness. For the back D-ring height, the distance between the D-ring and the sole of the worker's footwear, employers often use 5 feet as the standard height with the assumption that the worker will be 6 feet in height, but because the D-ring height variability can affect the safety of the system, the back D-ring height must be calculated based on the actual height of the worker. The safety margin, the additional distance that is needed to ensure sufficient clearance between the worker and the surface beneath the worker after a fall occurs, is generally considered to be a minimum of 2 feet.