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Construction workers worry about their safety

On Behalf of | May 23, 2017 | Workers' Compensation

Those who work in the construction industry in Virginia and throughout America may not be confident about their safety in the workplace. According to a study from the National Safety Council, 58 percent of respondents said that their safety comes second to getting the job done. Furthermore, 47 percent said that employees are afraid to report safety issues to management, and 51 percent of respondents said that management only does the bare minimum when it comes to safety.

The survey also found that 32 percent of respondents said that managers ignore an employee’s safety record when determining who gets promoted. Nearly 50 percent said that safety meetings were not held as often as they should have been. In addition, 67 percent said that standards were high for job performance than for safety.

A total of 4,836 people died in the workplace in 2015. In the construction industry, there were 937 deaths, which was the most of any U.S. industry. Falls are among one of the most common causes of death in the workplace. In the construction industry, nearly half of work fatalities are due to fall-related incidents. After seeing these results, the CEO of the National Safety Council called on employers to do their part to keep workers safe on the job.

If a person is hurt in a workplace accident, he or she may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. Workers may submit claims on their own or work with an attorney to go through the process of collecting compensation for lost wages and medical expenses. An attorney may be helpful in the event that a claim is denied or not processed in a timely manner.