Employers in Pennsylvania and throughout the country are obligated to ensure that workplaces are safe for their employees. To reinforce this, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has guidelines for certain situations.
Worksite dangers
Any worksite can be a dangerous one, and this is why most employers are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Even office workers can suffer from repetitive stress injuries if their workspace is not ergonomically designed, or they may trip and fall over file boxes in a hallway. However, there are some industries where rates of worker injuries are particularly high and where safety procedures are critical in preventing accidents. Construction sites are one example, and one of those preventable accidents for these workers is falling.
Construction site dangers
Some of the hazards on construction sites that can cause falls are obvious, such as tripping or failing to mark off holes. Holes should be roped off or covered with something strong enough to hold the weight of two workers plus anything they are likely to have with them. However, other types of hazards might be less obvious. For example, too much noise can mean that workers do not hear warnings from one another.
Other dangers
One issue that often leads to on-the-job injuries is workplaces that do not give their workers adequate time to follow safety procedures. For example, factory workers are supposed to follow a series of procedures to make sure that machines are turned off before maintenance is done, but if they are penalized for taking too much time, they might not go through the whole process. Workplaces also need to give workers enough time to fully don protective gear.
Even in workplaces that generally follow safety regulations, there may be errors that lead to a worker’s injury. Most employees are covered by workers’ compensation, which can help cover lost wages and medical expenses while an employee is recovering from an on-the-job injury.