When you make your living working in the construction industry in Texas, chances are, you are fairly well-versed in the various dangers associated with your line of work. At Freeman Law, we recognize that many construction-related injuries and fatalities result from the same set of circumstances, and we have helped many people who suffered serious injuries, or who lost loved ones, due to work-related incidents seek recourse in the aftermath.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, today’s construction workers face inherently dangerous work environments every day, and so much so that construction workers suffered more than 20% of all private-sector work-related deaths nationwide in 2017. In other words, one out of every five American worker deaths happened in the construction industry, and almost 60% of these construction worker deaths resulted from one of four distinct circumstances.
Falls were the biggest killer of construction workers in 2017, with 381 out of 971 construction deaths that year the result of falls. Another 80 construction worker deaths in 2017 resulted from tools or other objects striking construction workers while on the job, while another 71 deaths resulted from workers experiencing electrocution.
The fourth-most-common cause of construction worker deaths in 2017 was workers finding themselves caught or stuck between objects, machinery or equipment, which caused 50 construction worker fatalities in 2017. Currently, estimates suggest that finding ways to eliminate the four hazards known as construction’s “Fatal Four” would save close to 600 worker lives annually. Learn more about construction accidents and associated injuries and deaths on our webpage.
