Workplace fatalities

New York — New York City Department of Buildings inspectors issued nearly 3,700 violations during a citywide “zero tolerance” construction safety enforcement campaign, DOB Commissioner Melanie E. La Rocca recently announced.

Geneva, Switzerland — Work-related injuries and illnesses resulted in 1.9 million worker deaths worldwide in 2016, according to estimates recently released by the World Health Organization and International Labor Organization.

Washington — At least 155 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty during the first half of the year – a 9.9% increase from the same period in 2020, according to a recently released report from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

Washington — OSHA has published an instructional directive to ensure the agency “communicates its fatality inspection procedures to the victim’s family and facilitates the exchange of information throughout the inspection and settlement process.”

Silver Spring, MD — At least 12 sanitation workers suffered fatal injuries on the job during the first six months of the year – a 57.1% decrease from the same period in 2020, according to a recent analysis conducted by the Solid Waste Association of North America.

New York — A recent string of construction worker deaths has prompted the New York City Department of Buildings to begin conducting “zero-tolerance” safety sweeps at thousands of the largest and most complex construction sites in all five boroughs.

Denver — A surge in construction on Colorado’s Front Range and concerns over recent worker deaths statewide have prompted OSHA to launch an initiative to inspect worksites on weekends, “when worksites often go unchecked.”

Washington — A railway crew’s failure to operate within safe speed requirements and the Federal Railroad Administration’s interpretation of a safety regulation were factors in a fatal collision between a BNSF intermodal train and a work train in 2018, the National Transportation Safety Board has concluded.

Columbus, OH — Workplace exposure to COVID-19 is a substantial factor in the “disproportionately high” rate of cases and deaths among Latinos in the United States when compared with whites, results of a recent study by researchers from Ohio State University and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee show.

West Lafayette, IN — At least 64 incidents involving confined spaces in the agriculture industry were documented in 2020, and half were fatal, according to an annual report recently released by Purdue University.