Parsons Chairman and CEO Recognized as Safety Leader by Safety+Health Magazine

PASADENA, CA – Parsons is pleased to announce that its Chairman and CEO, Charles L. “Chuck” Harrington, has been recognized as one of the 2011 “CEOs Who ‘Get It’” by the National Safety Council’s Safety+Health magazine. The February issue of the publication profiles 10 business leaders who represent a wide range of industries, including construction, energy, and transportation. These CEOs demonstrate world-class safety at all levels of their organizations, and they ensure that best practices for safety and health are adopted consistently throughout their companies. They also lead the establishment and measurement of safety initiatives and create systems that measure and reward employees for their safety performance.

“I’m honored to be recognized by Safety+Health magazine, but it is really the performance of the entire Parsons team that deserves this honor,” said Chuck Harrington, Parsons’ Chairman and CEO. “This distinction ties directly with our safety core value. We are committed to maintaining a safe and healthy environment in all of our offices and on each of our projects because we care for our employees, customers, partners, and their families as well as others who come in contact with our operations.”

Parsons is recognized as a worldwide leader in occupational health and safety—as well as in its care for the environment. Parsons is one of only nine companies in the United States that has been accepted into OSHA’s (Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s) Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) and, currently, the corporation has 12 VPP sites. This recognition validates Parsons’ proactive safety management system, which is designed to make safety personal.

Parsons’ worldwide total recordable incident rates have continued to decrease since Mr. Harrington came on board as CEO in 2008, and the corporation’s rates are now considered world class. In fact, Parsons has adopted a policy of zero incidents. This proactive approach and its related techniques are reflected in the corporation’s SHARP (Safety, Health, and Risk Program) Management.

“Parsons’ safety efforts are visible and familiar,” said Andy Peters, Parsons Vice President, Safety, Health & Environment. “We communicate our commitment to safety, health, and the environment through SHARP as well as through various training methods.”

Harrington added, “We dedicate a significant amount of time, resources, and attention to assuring a safe and healthy working environment, and we credit our leading and lagging indicators that form our safety metric for focusing our attention in the critical areas that result in our performance.”

Every year Safety+Health magazine recognizes CEOs who have made safety a core value of their organization.


Parsons, celebrating more than 65 years of growth in the engineering and construction industry, is a leader in many diversified markets with a focus on infrastructure, environmental, and defense/security. Parsons delivers design/design-build, program and construction management, professional services, and innovative alternative delivery solutions to private industrial customers worldwide, as well as federal, regional, and local government agencies. For more about Parsons, please visit www.parsons.com.