This is National Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction Week
Since 2012, several federal agencies together with industry representatives, construction trade groups, safety organizations and advocates for injured construction workers and their loved ones have joined together to promote the annual National Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction Week during the month of May.
Sponsored by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (“NIOSH”), the Occupational Health & Safety Administration (“OSHA”), and the Center for Construction Research and Training (“CCRT”), among others, this year the week of May 2-6, 2022, is dedicated to (1) a national effort to boost worker awareness of the serious risk of fatal falls on any construction site as well as (2) promoting employers to better protect construction workers against the dangers of a deadly fall while on the job.
Why make this effort each year for the past ten years? Because too many construction workers die every year from bodily injuries sustained in a fall on the construction work site. According to the CCRT, falls are not only the top cause of construction fatalities, they also make up one-third of all on-the-job injury deaths in the United States.
From NIOSH Director John Howard, M.D.:
“Falls remain the leading cause of work-related deaths in construction, accounting for one-third of all on-the-job deaths in the industry. Employers can set aside time on the job to reinforce the knowledge, training and resources that are available for creating safer workplaces and preventing fatalities and injuries related to falls.”
What is a Stand-Down?
A key component to the yearly fall safety campaign is the “Stand-Down” itself. Employers are encouraged to participate in a National Safety Stand-Down, where “normal work is paused and the entire site focuses on a particular safety issue.”
During the Stand-Down, not only are employers to converse with their employees about the dangers of falls on the job site including company safety policies, but workers are also supposed to be able to “talk to management about fall hazards they see.”
Successful Stand-Downs involve a dialogue between employer and employees to address and resolve fall risks on their particular worksite. It’s a two-way conversation on ways to keep workers from dying in a deadly fall accident.
All Employers with Workers Facing Fall Risks Encouraged to Hold a Stand-Down
While construction industry employers are the focus of the annual campaign, any employer who may have workers facing fall risks on the job site are encouraged to participate. The National Safety Stand-Down Week targets both residential and commercial construction companies of all sizes as well as businesses involved in industrial construction, mining, general industry, etc.
From Illinois’ National Safety Council:
While construction workers are most at risk, falls can happen in agriculture, manufacturing, transportation and any other industry that involves working from height. NSC and OSHA encourage workers in all industries to conduct a Stand-down. No company is too small to participate; roughly half of events nationwide are held by companies with 25 or fewer employees.
The Very Great Risk of a Fatal Fall facing Construction Workers
CDC fatality data based upon worker deaths on the job site confirms that the construction industry poses the highest risk of death due to a fall on the job site, with construction worker fall fatalities comprising over half (51%) of all fatal falls in this country.
Falls still cause more construction worker deaths than any other type of on-the-job accident.
Another concerning statistic comes from OSHA, where annual fatality reports confirm there was an increase of 25% in construction worker deaths due to falls in 2019. These deaths involved a construction worker falling from an elevation on the job site, which might be as little as six feet over ground level. Deadly falls need not involve great heights or falling for great distances.
Often, as OSHA points out, these deadly construction site accidents result from a combination of factors involving both human actions and decision-making as well as equipment-related issues. For more, read “Fall Protection in Construction,” published by the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration, publication no. OSHA 3146-05R 2015.
Federal Construction Fall Safety Regulations: Title 29 CFR §1926 Subpart M
Accordingly, there are stringent and significant regulations imposed upon employers by the federal government to fight against the recognized fall hazards facing construction workers in this country. Title 29 C.F.R. §1926 Subpart M is dedicated to fall protection within the construction industry.
These federal safety requirements have been built by lawmakers over the years to try and protect construction workers from falling to their death when they are required to work at heights of six (6) feet or higher. The regulations also mandate safety protocols for construction workers who are tasked with working near dangerous equipment regardless of the height of their workspace, and federal rules also demand employer care and safety to protect workers against falling into holes or tripping over objects on the job site. See, e.g., 29 CFR §1926.500, 29 CFR §1926.501, 29 CFR §1926.502, and 29 CFR §1926.503.
The extremely high danger of deadly fall accidents on construction sites not only is well-known within the construction industry, it is heavily regulated with legal responsibilities placed upon employers to protect construction workers against the recognized risk of fatal falls on the work site.
2022 Campaign Focusing Upon Dangers of Falling from Roofs, Ladders, and Scaffolds
For this year’s national fall safety campaign, the focus is upon the prevention of fatal construction falls from roofs, ladders, and scaffolds. Employers are being urged to do three things:
- PLAN ahead to get the job done safely.
- PROVIDE the right equipment.
- TRAIN everyone to use the equipment safely.
For more on the dangers facing construction workers from roofs, ladders, and scaffolds, read our earlier discussions in:
- Roofers Hurt or Killed on the Job: Why is Roofing So Dangerous and Deadly?
- Fatal Rooftop Falls: Record-Breaking Number of Deadly Falls from Roof
- Scaffolding Accidents in Indiana and Illinois
- Ladder Accidents: The Very Real Danger of Death from Falling off a Ladder on the Job
- Construction Falls: Scaffolds and Ladders Can Cause Serious Accidents.
Fall Accidents and Construction Workers in Indiana and Illinois
While this week’s efforts to combat the unacceptably great dangers of a fatal fall facing construction workers in our part of the country are to be applauded, the infuriating truth is that the legal duties of care and safety on the construction site continue to be breached with deadly results.
When a serious or fatal fall accident happens on a construction site in Indiana or Illinois, the construction worker and their loved ones should know that both states have established legal avenues for justice that can provide monetary recompense in the aftermath of these tragedies.
Workers’ compensation, wrongful death, personal injury, and product liability laws must be considered for their applicability to the particular accident situation. In both Illinois and Indiana, the employer who does not comply with the legal duties of safety and care designed to protect against falls on a construction site may be held legally liable for the worker’s fall and its aftermath, including damages for medical expenses, lost wages, lost earning capacity, rehabilitation costs, and more.
In some situations, third parties may have legal responsibilities for the fall, as well, if the incident investigation confirms equipment, vehicles, or machinery involved in the accident was defective in some way, or was improperly repaired or maintained.
For more, read:
- Construction Fall Accidents in Indiana or Illinois: Great Danger of Fatal Injury in a Fall on the Job
- Construction Accidents: Hurt or Killed Working Construction in Indiana or Illinois
- Construction Worker’s Danger of Being Hurt or Killed on the Job: High Risk and Little Protection
- Legal Protection for Construction Workers from High Risk and Danger of Serious Injury or Death on the Job.
There is a shockingly high risk of a fatal fall facing construction workers in Indiana and Illinois every day as they go about their daily work on the jobsite. While this danger is known and safety procedures are in place to protect against these fall hazards, statistics reveal that all too often employers are negligent or cavalier about the fatal fall risks facing their workers, leaving the construction worker exposed to a horrific and untimely death on the job. Please be careful out there!
