In 2021, 12.1 per 100,000 construction workers in New York state died on the job, a 9% increase from 11.1 the year before, according to a new report from the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health.
The total number of workers who died in the state increased to 61 in 2021, up from 41 in 2020, reported NYCOSH, a membership organization that represents workers, unions and health and safety professionals.
— Construction Dive
The Committee also found that one-quarter of all workplace fatalities across New York state took place on construction sites, a repeat of the figure contained in the Deadly Skyline Report for 2020. Latino workers accounted for 25.5% of the deaths recorded, keeping pace with a larger grisly national trend. Overall, an average of 53.6 workers have died on job sites each year in New York over the past decade.
The NYC Department of Buildings had the same year enacted “zero tolerance” safety sweeps resulting in nearly 1,500 stop-work orders. The reform efforts were added to recently in the form of the new Carlos’ Law, which will increase the financial penalties on employers in negligent death cases from $10,000 to $500,000 (to a maximum of $1 million). In New York City alone, where 20 workers died, some 89% of construction sites had some form of safety issue, according to a report published by the State Comptroller’s Office in September.
As Construction Dive also noted, residential construction sites are the riskiest statewide, with only 1 of every 10 injury cases resulting in abatement, according to OSHA regional director Stephen B. Boyd.
1 Comment
As former NYC DoB Site Safety Plan Examiner I point out that the agency prohibits examiners from visiting construction sites they review for Site Safety Plans. And that inspectors who do visit construction sites are woefully inexperienced and trained to assess hazards of construction.
Licensed Site Safety Managers are replaced if they attempt to enforce compliance.
For a site visit an inspector must arrange an appointment with the contractor which allows time to costume the site for clean bill of safety.
Consequently, despite DoB's orchestrated campaign of safety first and publicized sweeps, construction sites remain extremely hazardous, not only to workers but to the public.
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