Falls Down; Suicides, Overdoses and Equipment Deaths Up in 2018

Fatal Occupational Injuries The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has released its National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2018. While the overall rate of fatal work injuries remained the same from 2017 to 2018, the nature of the injuries has changed. Transportation incidents are still the most common cause of fatal work injuries, with […]

Top Ten Workplace Violations

The purpose of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is to create and enforce laws to protect the safety of employees while on the job. If you’re a construction worker, for example, you’re surrounded by dangerous equipment and high risk situations on a daily basis. OSHA has a set of requirements that your employer […]

Injury Prone Jobs in America

If you’ve been living in America in the last couple of decades, you’ve likely seen the television show, Deadliest Catch. Premiering on the Discovery Channel back in 2005, the documentary show follows the lives and events aboard several fishing vessels. The entire premises of the show resides in the fact that fishers and fishing workers […]

Exposure to Toxic Chemicals

Working at a job that requires you to be exposed to toxic chemicals is dangerous. It’s that simple. Exposure in the form of inhalation, contact with the skin, or ingestion of toxic substances can cause serious injury and death. Exposure to dangerous chemicals because of someone’s negligence is also serious business, and one-time exposure to […]

Electrocution Death and Construction Workers

After analyzing data from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the National Fire Protection Association has determined that a “significant share” of contract worker deaths from electrocution in the four-year period from 2012 to 2016 were construction workers. Contract workers are either employees from an outside entity or self-employed independent contractors. In a report published in […]

Workers’ Compensation for First Responders with PTSD

You may find this shocking but, in most states, firefighters, police officers, EMTs and other first responders who are diagnosed with PTSD are forced to prove that the condition is job-related in order to receive Workers’ Compensation benefits. A few states have changed that, making PTSD a presumptive condition for first responders. That means, if […]

Common Injuries for Steelworkers and Ironworkers

Steelworkers and ironworkers face serious dangers every day. Welding, working with sharp and powerful tools as well as sharp and heavy materials can be dangerous for workers in relatively contained and controlled settings, and many iron and steel workers are also operating in dangerous settings such as working at great heights, near heavy traffic and […]

Trump Administration De-Regulatory Agenda Threatens Worker Safety

When Donald Trump ran for President in 2016, it was as a champion of blue collar, working Americans. It set him apart in the Republican primary, when he successfully out-flanked GOP rivals who ran on the usual Republican supply-side talking points. And that pose – while always of questionable sincerity – worked well enough in […]

Construction Industry Workers are Vulnerable to Asbestos Exposure

Any oncologist can tell you with confidence: the construction industry is plagued is asbestos exposure. Asbestos was used to manufacture construction materials because of its tensile strength and ability to resist heat and insulate electrical surfaces. In fact, asbestos at one point in history was praised for its ability to make buildings safer, which is […]