Construction Safety Week 2025 is this week (May 5th to May 9th). According to Construction Safety Week’s Official Website, Construction Safety Week “is a week-long event that happens annually. The construction industry, its clients and business partners take this opportunity to recommit to sending every worker home safe each day.”
Construction Safety Week started approximately 10 years ago, when over forty construction firms “joined forces with a single aim: to inspire everyone in the industry to be leaders in safety.” Construction Safety Week was formally branded in 2016 and promulgates the following mission on its website:
- Celebrating the efforts of workers and organizations across the nation that support safety and recognizing their efforts to make every job site injury-free
- Increasing awareness and the actions of craft professionals, project leaders, and business leaders in elevating the importance of being committed to safety, every day
- Encouraging everyone to share best practices and to work together to strengthen the industry’s safety culture
- Providing resources and support to ensure every worker is fully prepared – mind and body – for the work at hand
- Conducting year-round safety awareness activities on-site to support education
While it is commendable that various members of the construction industry have used this week to highlight the importance of safety on construction sites, the unfortunate reality is that preventable construction accidents resulting in serious injuries and death still occur on a frequent basis. Unsafe constructions practices continue to permeate the industry thereby jeopardizing the safety and well-being of men and women simply trying to provide for their families.
According to the statistics maintained by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the following are the top 10 most frequently cited standards by OSHA in fiscal year 2024 (October 1, 2023, through September 30, 2024):
- Fall Protection, general requirements (29 CFR 1926.501)
- Hazard Communication, general industry (29 CFR 1910.1200)
- Control of Hazardous Energy (lockout/tagout), general industry (29 CFR 1910.147)
- Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053)
- Respiratory Protection, general industry (29 CFR 1910.134)
- Powered Industrial Trucks, general industry (29 CFR 1910.178)
- Fall Protection Training, construction (29 CFR 1926.503)
- Scaffolding, construction (29 CFR 1926.451)
- Eye and Face Protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.102)
- Machine Guarding, general industry (29 CFR 1910.212)
Given the fact that numerous OSHA violations specific to the construction industry appear on this list, it is clear that there is ample room for improvement of safety in the construction industry.
Construction sites are inherently dangerous work environments with a variety of risks that can cause serious injury or death. Unsafe practices by construction companies that do not emphasize the importance of safety further magnify these risks.
The attorneys at DiSandro and Malloy, P.C. have the experience necessary to handle construction accident cases and hold construction companies accountable when they fail to protect workers. If you or a loved one has been involved in a construction accident, please contact us today for a free consultation.
