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Falls are the leading cause of fatal construction worker accidents. Even falls from low heights can result in brain or spinal cord injury, broken bones and even death.
According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), businesses must provide any safety equipment that employees need to do their job safely. For that reason, employers must provide fall protection for all employees working on surfaces six feet or higher.
Bosco Custom Homes Inc. received numerous citations for inadequate fall safety during an OSHA inspection in April. Compliance officers investigating two work sites in Elgin observed several employees working at heights of 11 feet without any sort of fall protection.
In June, more unprotected workers were spotted at a residence in Wheaton. Bosco received a single willful citation for each failure to provide fall protection.
The Illinois contractor received several repeat violations for failing to provide protective helmets and fall protection training. OSHA cited Bosco for these issues during its last inspection in 2013, but management failed to address them in time.
What Kind of Fall Protection Does OSHA Require?
OSHA accepts several different kinds of fall protection, such as guardrails, safety nets and personal fall arrest systems. Studies have shown that fall protection saves lives and prevents serious injury, but some employers still try to cut corners.
If you were badly injured in a fall at work, your employer’s negligence may be to blame. For questions about your accident and more advice on your legal options, speak with a workers’ comp attorney at Larrimer & Larrimer today. We would love to hear your story.
Larrimer & Larrimer, LLC—Columbus Workers Comp Attorneys