Construction Site Safety Should be a Concern to All of Us

As we begin to come out of the COVID pandemic, businesses are re-opening and new construction is once again evident, especially in New York City. The pandemic caused the construction industry to nearly shut down completely which had an obvious effect on construction workers and the local economy.

Now that construction is resuming, there is a new concern that involves safety, namely site safety at construction sites. The construction industry continues to face high rates of fatal and nonfatal injuries and accidents among its workers.

For example, 20 percent of worker deaths in the United States are in construction, but construction workers make up only 6 percent of the U.S. labor force. This disparity highlights the need for a continued push to improve safety on the job for those working in the construction industry. Despite OSHA regulations, construction work remains one of the most dangerous occupations for American workers.

Fatal Construction Industry Statistics

1. One in five deaths among U.S. workers is in the construction industry. [OSHA]
2. Of the 42 annual crane-related deaths, around 60 percent involve a falling object. [BLS]
3. A total of 1,061 construction workers died on the job in 2019. [BLS]
4. Each year, 9.7 of every 100,000 construction workers suffer a fatal injury, which is the fourth-highest rate of any industry. [BLS]
5. Falls account for 33% of all construction deaths, and eliminating falls in construction would save more than 300 lives every year. [BLS]
6. The “Fatal Four” leading causes of construction deaths (falls, struck by equipment, caught in between, and electrocutions) account for over 60 percent of all construction-related deaths. [OSHA]

Non-Fatal Construction Injuries

1. Each year, 1.7 percent of construction workers suffer an injury serious enough that they miss work. [BLS]
2. The construction industry accounts for 8.5% of all injuries that result in lost days of work. [BLS]
3. Injury rates in construction are 71% higher than injury rates across all industries on average. [NIH]
4. More than 25 percent of construction workers indicate that they had failed to report a work-related injury. [CPWR]

These are just some of the many injury statistics that construction workers face, for more information, please visit this website.

The lawyers at Rheingold Giuffra Ruffo Plotkin & Hellman have decades of experience representing construction workers and investigating construction site accidents, such as scaffolding accidents. If you or a loved one have been injured on a construction site, contact us for a free, confidential evaluation of your claim.