North Carolina workers deserve a safe environment in which to complete their jobs. While many workplace regulations aim to reduce the risks you face on a daily basis, there is always the chance for accidents to happen.
This is especially true with fall incidents. Falls continue to be a prevalent threat to workers across many different industries, with enormous annual tolls.
Fall accident statistics
The National Safety Council examines fall incidents and injuries across industries. Within a single year (2016), 48,060 workers suffered severe injuries due to fall incidents. Between work-related and home-related falls, a total of 34,637 people died.
The spread of falls and fall-related deaths or injuries differs from industry to industry. For example, construction has the highest number of deaths at 384 victims. Education and health services has the lowest number, at 18 victims.
Government has the highest rate of total falls, with 63,350 people suffering from fall injuries. Wholesale trade has the lowest, with 10,250 people. Many factors contribute to the potential lethality of a fall, including the heights at which one works.
Causes of falls
However, almost all falls stem from preventable causes. The top causes for falls include:
- A lack of safety gear or equipment
- Old, outdated or broken equipment that is not properly repaired or replaced
- Lack of emphasis on safety training and obeying safety rules and protocol
- Employers forcing employees to feel rushed
- Using tools for unintended purposes
No matter what industry you work in, you will likely see these causes come up. This is why many people injured in falls on the job are able to seek workers’ compensation.
