New Jersey workers like you want to go through your day as safe as possible. For some jobs, this is easier said than done. For others, unnecessary additional stress gets piled on workers thanks to unsafe working conditions.
These conditions can and do lead to prevalent issues such as the frequent fall incidents in construction. But why exactly do they happen so often, and can you prevent them?
How dangerous is construction regarding falls?
The National Safety Council reviews fall statistics across all fields of employment. Their findings reveal that construction as an industry suffers from the highest risk of fall incidents. In total, 24,700 happened in construction. Likewise, 384 of the 697 workers who died worked in construction. Though these statistics come from 2016, the situation has not improved a notable amount.
Why do construction workers suffer from such a high risk of fall? First, it is due in part to the nature of your job. You often work at heights that create large physical injury when you fall from it. But outside of that, almost all fall incidents are preventable, unfortunately.
What causes fall incidents?
A few of the main causes include:
- A lack of safety equipment or gear
- A lack of safety training
- Broken, damaged or old equipment that remains in use
- Employees feeling rushed
- Related, the value of fast work over safe work
Most of these issues stem from upper management. They wish to get projects done quickly and thus create incentive to work fast. Unfortunately, fast work often means sloppy work, which leads to accidents. Attempts to cut costs and cut corners also happens, resulting in defunct equipment continuing to stay in use long after it is safe. With primary causes like this, workers often seek workers’ compensation for their injuries.
