Don’t Become the Next Safety Statistic

The federal government released data in December suggesting that construction remains a uniquely and stubbornly dangerous occupation for laborers. Groups like the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) continues to address this reality with more focused safety primers for members. For example, view their Safety Orientation Training Video for electrical workers below.

The Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR), an arm of North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU), crunched occupational fatal and non-fatal injury data compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for 2019 and concludes that, despite some progress through the years, the arrows may not be pointing in the right direction for the industry.

Daily safety meetings are one way construction crews, including electrical professionals, can combat the prevalence of accidents and near misses in the industry.

In a February 2021 report, CPWR notes that the construction industry logged 1,102 fatal injuries in 2019 (1,061 in private industry), 64 more than in 2018 — the biggest one-year spike since 2014 by its calculation — and also 41% higher than the number recorded in 2011 (see Chart below). However, CPWR says that when adjusting for the size of the labor force, the number is not glaring, as it works out to a rate of about 9.6 fatalities per 100,000 full-time workers, still within a tight range that has held fairly steady since 2011.

Meanwhile, non-fatal injuries in construction continue to decrease, though the sector continues to account for an outsized share of incidents. BLS data show that in 2019 there were 79,660 lost-workday injuries in construction, two-thirds of which were recorded by specialty trade contractors, including electrical and wiring contractors, who accounted for 7,740 of the 52,620 cases — the fourth highest among the broad group. Electrical worker injuries, like those for other subcontractor groups, were clustered mostly in four categories: sprains/strains/tears; fractures; soreness/pain; and cuts/lacerations/punctures.

A report issued by CPWR in December 2020 regarding non-fatal injury trends in construction notes that the industry’s injury rate of 112 per 10,000 workers in 2019 marks a continuation of a steady decline going back to 2003, when it stood at 259. Nevertheless, it says, the 2019 rate for construction is comparatively high, sitting at 29% higher than the average of 86 per 10,000 workers for all industries combined.

At 126, the average yearly lost-workday injury rate between 2017 and 2019 for specialty trade contractors is higher than that for the other two construction sub-groups, building construction and heavy & civil engineering. Electrical contractors and other wiring installation contractors averaged 7,200 lost-workday injuries between 2017 and 2019, CPWR calculated, the second highest among six specialties it highlighted. But that group’s average rate of 85 injuries per 10,000 workers is by far the lowest of the six (see Chart below).

Construction-related non-fatal injuries tallied by the government ran the gamut, but the CPWR analysis notes that one-third stemmed from contact with objects or equipment at work sites. Struck-by incidents totaled 15,800 in 2019, which is 2,000 more than recorded in 2011. Falls, mostly those to lower levels, led to 13,770 construction injuries in 2019, a 41% increase over the number recorded in 2011. Falls, slips, and trips of all types accounted for 31% of all 2019 non-fatal injuries, a six-percentage point increase from 2011.

Falls too often result in fatalities, and statistics show they were the single biggest culprit in that outcome in construction settings in 2019. In fact, they rose significantly from 2018, accounting for 36% of deaths, a six-percentage point leap, CPWR calculated. Falls are one of the Occupational Health & Safety Administration’s (OSHA's) Construction Focus Four events the agency is committed to reducing, the others being struck-by, caught-in-between, and electrocution. Together they accounted for 709 construction fatalities in 2019, CPWR concludes. Electrocutions accounted for 7% of fatal injuries in 2019, down slightly from 2018, and have stayed steady as a percentage of total fatalities going back to 2011.

This new BLS data on injuries and fatalities are a reminder that construction is inherently dangerous work. Read between the lines — construction work likely growing in an expanding, infrastructure-focused economy; job sites packed with more, but fewer experienced workers; compressed project timelines – and it’s easy to see construction becoming a hotbed of occupational injury statistics. This possibility may be catching the eye of groups representing construction trade workers, including NECA, which recently inked an agreement with the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) to collaborate more closely to address worker safety issues. The agreement, NECA says in an ASSP news release, will “bring a new level of expertise” to efforts to “raise the profile of worker safety in our industry.”

Although electrical professionals aren't necessarily always in the direct line of fire when it comes to certain types of construction accidents, such as falls from roofs or struck-by object injuries, risks still exist solely by working on these job sites. Review the following graphics from CPWR as a reminder why it only takes one strike to take you out.