Construction industry, fatalities

The health effects of long term or high levels of exposure to airborne asbestos fibres have been well documented since the early 1900s and were reported by the medical profession on many occasions in the first half of the last century. The majority of illnesses that are occurring at the present time are due to exposure forty to fifty years ago during the peak usage and manufacture of asbestos materials for the construction industry. These illnesses include the following fatal diseases ... 

The Health and Safety Executive (2014) report that the UK construction industry only employs approximately 5% of the UK workforce, but disproportionately accounts for 31% of fatal injuries, 10% of reported major/specified injuries and 6% of over-7-day injuries to employees. In the period 2013/14 there were 42 fatal injuries to workers in the construction industry and 592 000 working days were lost due to workplace injury, a total of 1.1 days lost per worker. All these statistics make for unpleasant reading, and also make construction one of the most dangerous industries to work in within the UK. 

Kartam, N. A., Bouz, R. G. (1998). Fatalities and injuries in the Kuwaiti construction industry. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 30, 805-814. 

Justification for investing in a strong fall protection program goes much deeper than avoiding six-figure penalties. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recorded well more than 600 fall-related fatalities in 2009, and falls are perennially cited as the leading cause of worker death in the construction industry. 

Once new OSHA regulations take effeet June 16, any employer who is not providing aeeept-able forms of fall protection for affected workers will be cited, unless they can demonstrate why conventional fall protection was not feasible or why it presented a greater hazard if used. Of course employers have always had a responsibility to protect their employees from work-related hazards, but improved guidelines from OSHA will help to lead the construction industry and all industries in a safer direction. This will result in better work environments and reduce the amount of fall-reMed injuries and fatalities suffered on the job. C... 

Janicak A.C, 2008. Occupational fatalities due to electrocutions in the construction industry. Journal of Safety Research 39, 617-621. 

Each years falls account for a large percent of fatalities in the construction industry. This toolbox talk gives you the opportunity to share the top five fall protection violations that OSHA compliance officers cite. 

Those differences extend to fatality rates. In statistics analyzed by NIOSH in 1994, the U.S. construction industry had a confined space fatality rate about two and a half times that of the manufacturing industry. If the focus is on trench cave-ins, the numbers are even more lopsided. During one ten-year period studied by NIOSIP, the construction industry accounted for 77 percent of the trench cave-in deaths. 

Chapter 3 reviews general health and safety hazards and the risks of accidents in construction work, including some accident statistics and a case description of a fatal accident. The results gained by the recent focus on improving safety performance by the Finnish construction industry itself and by its stakeholders are reviewed. 

In the construction industry, the frequency of accidents is higher than in most other industries, and a major share of serious and fatal accidents is every year registered to construction work. 

Each year, the HSE publishes a report in which data are given on the number of fatal accidents and the incidence rate for reportable non-fatal accidents. In the period 1981-1985 the figures for fatal accidents in the construction industry compared with the manufacturing industries were ... 

While overall there has been a decline in the extent of fatal injuries, the construction industry incidence rate is nearly five times that of the manufacturing industries, and in comparison with other industries the accident rate... 

This compares with the United States where in 1990/1 the Bureau of Labor fatality statistics reveal that Transportation and public utilities have 8.4 fatalities per 100,000 employees. This makes it the third highest category behind the construction industry (with a rate of 16.7) and agriculture, forestry, and fishing (with a rate of 10) (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1993 47). 

The main causes of fatal accidents in the construction industry in 2004/05 were ... 

Over many years, the construction industry has had a poor health and safety record. In 1966, there were 292 fatalities in the industry and by 1995 this figure had reduced to 62 but by 2000/01 the figure had increased... 

This causes 18% of fatalities at work and is the second highest cause of fatality in the construction industry. 

The preamble to the standard does not explain why fall arrest equipment was not mandated for situations other than those specified in 1926.1053(a)(18) and 1926.1053(a)(19). However, the use of personal fall protection does not generally result in a greater hazard. Working without fall protection continues to be one of the leading causes of fatalities in the construction industry. 

The construction industry has an unenviable accident record and, until the 1990s, had more electrical fatalities than any other industry. The accident rate dropped during the 1990s, largely as a result of the emphasis placed on the use of 110 V centre-tapped-to-earth supplies to hand tools and the use of safer distribution systems. However, serious accidents and fatalities still occur, with contact with overhead power lines being an all too frequent occurrence. 

Table 2.1 Fatalities to employees in the construction industry, sample years ...

If an accident happens, you or the person it happened to may be lucky and will not be injured. More often, an accident will result in an injury which may be minor (e.g. a cut or a bruise) or possibly major (e.g. loss of a limb). Accidents can also be fatal. The most common causes of fatal accidents in the construction industry are ... 

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