Construction safety equipment, technology and training are improving. Despite this, workers in the industry continue to suffer injuries at a high rate.
What are some of the top reasons construction site injuries continue to occur?
Construction site injury statistics
The construction industry has a 71% higher injury rate than all other industries even though about 25% of workers say they did not report an injury that occurred. In an average year, 1.7% of construction workers suffer injuries severe enough to miss work. Injuries in the construction industry make up 8.5% of injuries that result in lost workdays.
One of every five worker deaths in the United States occurs in the construction industry. In 2019, 1,061 construction workers died on the job. Annually, 9.7 out of 100,000 construction workers sustain a fatal injury which is the fourth-highest injury rate of any industry.
Top causes of construction site injuries
There are four main causes of construction site injuries:
- Falls
- Impacts from objects
- Electrocutions
- Workers getting trapped in or between objects
These four injury types cause more than 60% of construction worker deaths. Falling objects cause 60% of crane-related deaths. Falls cause 33% of total construction deaths.
Construction injuries cost more than $11.5 billion every year in the United States. Investments in safety programs could reduce these injury totals and save as much as $4 to $6 for every $1 invested. Advancements in safety technology are making the industry safer for workers; however, these statistics demonstrate that the industry still has a long way to go.