Industry News

• Construction worker is dead in horrifying accident
  A construction worker erecting an Astoria apartment building died Thursday after he fell through the floor and struck his head on a steel girder, cops and witnesses say.
• Worker dies in scaffolding collapse
  A construction worker died and two others suffered serious injuries when a scaffold collapsed at a new school in DeKalb County.
• Construction worker dies after falling at work site
  A 47-year-old Campbell man working at a construction site died after falling from a second-story roof near Duane Avenue on Thursday afternoon, authorities said.
• Construction worker falls 30 feet from roof and lives
  A worker fell from the roof of the house at 84 Newman Ave. this morning, prompting an Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation at the work site.
• OSHA cites American Building following fatal employee fall
  According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), the most common cause of death and injury for construction workers is falls, because these workers very often have to work at high heights on infrastructure such as office buildings, living complexes and hospitals.
• OSHA fines firm in Stamford construction death
  OSHA: ‘Willful violation’ at Chelsea Piers site where worker was killed in accident. The Trumbull contracting firm whose worker fell to his death in October while working on a roofing project at Chelsea Piers has been fined more than $50,000 by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
• Does a construction manager have a legal duty of care to workers for job site safety?
  Does a construction manager have a duty of care to employees of contractors and subcontractors to provide a safe project site? This was the question that the Indiana Supreme Court addressed in its opinion issued on March 22, 2012, in the case of Hunt Construction Group, Inc. v. Garrett.
• Mass contractor previously cited for fall hazards in 3 states
  The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Shawnlee Construction LLC for fall hazards identified during the construction of a new public safety building in Montville.
• OSHA extends temporary fall protection standards for residential construction
  In September of 2011, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) extended temporary enforcement measures for fall protection of workers at residential construction sites.
• Senator Gallivan Sponsors Legislation to Reform the “Scaffold Law”
  The Senator joined with groups from across the state today to announce his sponsorship of a bill, S.6816, to reform New York’s antiquated and costly Scaffold Law.
• Explaining Negligence in the Construction Industry
  Some of the most common accidents that occur in construction sites involve six-feet-or-more falls from ladders or stairs. Other accidents are caused by the failure to implement safety precautions, such as improper building of scaffolding, use of dangerous tools and unsafe machinery, and other hazardous issues.
• New approach needed for bigger return on safety programs
  A Vancouver construction safety expert says the industry needs to change the way it manages workplace safety if owners and contractors are to increase the return on investment (ROI) from their safety programs.
• Construction spending in U.S. climbs most in four months in stability sign
  Construction spending in the U.S. rose in December at the fastest pace in four months, reflecting broad- based gains that signal the industry is stabilizing.
• Construction Company Busted for Fall Protection, Eye Safety Violations
  The company was cited for four willful safety citations for failing to provide fall protection and ensure workers operating nail guns wore safety glasses at two separate job sites in Findlay and Toledo, Ohio. Proposed fines total $48,400.
• Construction Worker Dies after Six-Story Fall from Manhattan Church
  According to officials, a construction worker died this morning after falling six stories while installing a safety net under the roof of an Upper West Side church.
• OSHA fines 4 area firms for safety issues
  Federal regulators have fined four northwest Ohio construction contractors and a Minnesota firm over safety violations found during inspections of work sites in the area. In all, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration doled out fines totaling $126,760.
• Construction Worker Falls From Rooftop
  A construction worker was airlifted from a construction site Saturday afternoon but is expected to survive after falling from the building’s roof.
• Fines for Serious Violations Double in 2011; Number of OSHA Inspections Drops Slightly
  The average proposed penalty for a serious workplace safety violation more than doubled in fiscal 2011, but the fines are still too low, says Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health David Michaels.
• 19-year-old framer fatally injured in fall
  Police have identified a 19-year-old construction worker fatally injured Wednesday morning in a fall from the roof of a tornado-damaged home. The accident occurred about 10:30 a.m. in the Merrick section of the city when the 19-year-old worker fell four stories inside the home.
• Building accidents ‘not reported’
  The construction union says half of accidents and injuries on Canberra building sites are not being reported properly. The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 requires employers to report workplace injuries and near-misses.
• Better safety measures for construction workers could prevent injuries or deaths
  The recent fatality involving a man working on a tornado-damaged house in West Springfield has highlighted the need to take safety measures to prevent falls, according to an official with the Western Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health.
• KKR to buy Capital Safety for $1.12 billion
  Capital Safety, the world’s leading manufacturer of fall protection equipment under the DBI-SALA(TM), UNILINE(R) and PROTECTA(R) brands, today announces its acquisition by KKR, a leading global investment firm, from Arle Capital Partners, which had owned the company since mid-2007.
• Chelsea Piers building contractor cited in worker death
  The Trumbull contractor whose worker fell to his death last month from an unfinished roof at the Chelsea Piers construction site hadn’t paid the deceased employee or his brothers in three weeks or provided them with workplace safety training, state labor officials said.
• Fall protection rules tightened by OSHA builders must comply
  In response to the high number of deaths related to falls in residential construction, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration says it is requiring employers operating in the residential construction industry to use the same methods of fall protection that historically have been used in the commercial construction industry.
• Top 10 most frequently cited OSHA violations
  What are OSHA inspectors targeting now? The agency has released its top 10 violations for fiscal year 2011.
• Widespread violations found in homebuilding industry
  Alberta’s new minister in charge of employment says a province-wide shift is needed to make safety a top priority in every workplace. His comments come after a month-long inspection blitz of homebuilders that found almost 400 unsafe practices, including dangerous walkways and entrances, lack of first aid equipment and improper scaffolding.
• Fall Hazards, Multiple Repeat Violations Lead to Contractor’s $180,100 Fine
  OSHA has cited Twin Pines Construction Inc./Teles Construction Inc. for alleged repeat, serious, and other-than-serious violations of workplace safety standards following an inspection of a Portsmouth, N.H., worksite. The Everett, Mass., framing contractor faces a total of $180,100 in proposed fines, chiefly for fall, scaffolding, and electrical hazards.
• Construction workers more likely to die on the job
  Over their careers, construction workers have a one in 200 chance of dying on the job, five times what the government considers the “significant” risk of death at work, a new study says. Construction injury risks are also very high.
• How to survive a visit by OSHA
  As fines grow and enforcement gets stricter, construction and agriculture businesses are prime targets for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
• Construction workers dies after 30 foot fall
  A man who apparently was working on the roof of a company in northeast Charlotte was killed Wednesday morning after falling at least 30 feet to the ground below, according to Charlotte police and fire officials.
• Worker dies in Chelsea Piers construction accident
  A construction worker died after falling more than 50 feet Tuesday afternoon from the site of the new Chelsea Piers sports complex on the city’s East Side, police and emergency medical officials said.
• Contractors face new regulations in fall protection for employees
  Changing standards for fall protection in residential construction are being enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
• Prevention of Jobsite Fatalities Focus of Construction Safety Summit
  Current industry safety statistics indicate that the construction industry is plagued by three deaths in the workplace every day, with Hispanic workers accounting for two thirds of those fatalities.
• Growth in US Construction to Outpace GDP Over Next 10 Years
  Despite weaker than expected annual growth of +1.3% in GDP during the second quarter 2011, private sector investment in US construction rose by an annual rate of +8.1% for non-residential and +3.8% for residential construction, reversing declines in the first quarter of 2011.
• Sousa contractor is cited for fall hazards by OSHA
  A borough-based general contractor has been cited for exposing workers to fall hazards and other safety violations at an apartment-building construction site in West Windsor Township, OSHA announced Wednesday. OSHA has issued citations to Sousa Contractors Inc. in conjunction with a Dec. 10, 2010, inspection conducted as part of OSHA’s Local Emphasis program on fall hazards in construction, according to an OSHA press release.
• Steelworker falls 20 feet in construction accident
  A steelworker plunged about 20 feet on the site of the new Grafton High School this morning and was sent to UMass Memorial Medical Center with serious injuries. The worker has been identified only as a steelworker. Dimeo Construction’s safety coordinator as well as representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) were on site investigating the accident.
• Construction worker falls, suffers serious head injury
  A construction worker suffered a serious head injury Friday after a staging platform fell over and the worker landed head-first on a concrete floor. The fall occurred while the worker was hanging a drop ceiling…
• Two injured as scaffold falls
  Two men were injured when scaffolding at the site of Hendrick Medical Center’s $86 million Project 2010 construction project collapsed Monday afternoon. Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials said they are launching an investigation into the incident at the site, which is managed by Hoar Construction.
• Roofing Contractor Facing $243,000 in Fines
  OSHA says Lessard Brothers Construction Inc. put workers at risk of a fall during a construction job in Lewiston. OSHA is proposing to fine a Lewiston roofing contractor more than $243,000 in fines for what it says are serious and repeat safety violations.
• OSHA Announces Phase-in for Residential Construction Fall Protection
  The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today announced a three month phase-in period to allow residential construction employers to come into compliance with the Agency’s new directive to provide residential construction workers with fall protection.
• Appeals Court Upholds OSHA Fall Protection Directive
  A federal appeals court has rejected a legal challenge by the National Roofing Contractors Association to OSHA’s directive on the use of fall protection in residential construction. The directive withdrew an earlier one that allowed certain residential construction employers to bypass some fall protection requirements.
• Man dies in fall from building construction project
  One man is dead after falling Tuesday from the federal courthouse construction project in Cedar Rapids, reported the Gazette newspaper.
• Improving Employee Involvement in Construction Safety Programs
  When two parties perceive a difference in their goals, an inevitable rift emerges between them. Safety professionals, for example, may be perceived in the workplace as existing only to complicate workers’ lives and stunt production.
• OSHA document describes methods to help prevent injuries among construction workers
  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration today issued guidance on Fall Protection in Residential Construction to help employers prevent fall-related injuries and deaths among residential construction workers. Data shows that falls are the leading cause of death for workers involved in residential construction.
• D.R. Horton, subcontractors cited by OSHA
  Homebuilder D.R. Horton of Greenwood Village and four subcontractors have been cited for safety violations following an inspection of a residential project jobsite in Parker. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration said the proposed penalties for all employers at the worksite total $93,640.
• OSHA Replaces Residential Construction Fall Protection Directive
  OSHA published a notice Dec. 22 that it is issuing a new compliance directive for fall protection used during residential construction. The new directive, STD 03-11-002, Fall Protection in Residential Construction, rescinds compliance directive STD 03-00-001, Interim Fall Protection Compliance Guidelines for Residential Construction, which became effective June 18, 1999.