Mark a Simon - Denver Personal Injury Attorney Talks Common Work Place Injuries

If you are a employee in the workplace, it is important to be aware of the many ways in which you can become injured or hurt on the job. There’s a reason why companies stress employee safety and strong workplace practices: injuries on the job can cost companies an exorbitant amount of money each year if they aren’t careful. With that in mind, here are some of the most common workplace injuries experienced in the workplace from your Denver workers compensation attorney.

Common Types of Injuries Suffered on the Job

You may think that your particular type of industry is immune from the possibility of injuring yourself, but this is simply not the case. In fact, many seemingly harmless work environments have lots of different hazards which can lead to serious injury, dramatically reducing workplace productivity in the process. There are some workplace injury types to be aware of.

Slips and falls are one of the biggest ways a person can incur an injury in the workplace. Slippery or wet surfaces can lead to unexpected and unplanned slips, which can cascade into breaking one’s fall by injuring a hand or other appendage. Often, a simple warning sign can be employed in order to prevent the likelihood that someone will injure themselves through this specific injury type.

Another common form of injury that occurs in the workplace is a repetitive strain injury. This is typically found in workplaces where an employee is engaged in an extremely repetitive motion, leading to a strain of the neck, back, or other part of the body. If a person is bent over or in one specific posture for prolonged periods of time, the chances of incurring an injury are significantly higher than if that person moved around frequently and positioned themselves differently.

Crashes and collisions create a hazard for workers, as this particular activity can come with serious consequences. Whether a person is required to drive a car or truck as a part of their workplace responsibilities or they need to operate heavy machinery such as a forklift, crashing or incurring a collision while on the job is a very common injury that employees can deal with. As with any other injury, proper safety protocols are essential to preventing and reducing the chances of this taking out a worker for an extended period of time.

Toxic fumes inhaled by workers are another way in which individuals can become incapacitated on the job, as serious impairment to breathing functions can occur without proper protection. These types of injuries tend to occur in industrial environments, usually in places such as factories, warehouses, and other areas where various types of dust, particles, and chemicals may be released into the air. For this reason, workers in these types of environments should make sure to wear proper protective gear, such as a respirator.

Cuts or lacerations are another common form of workplace injury, affecting workers in a large variety of workplace environments. Most commonly, employees engaged in activities where they are utilizing sharp objects, such as tools or knives, are much more likely to incur a cut or laceration. Employers are encouraged to have the proper precautionary measures in place to reduce the likelihood that these types of injuries will occur. Of course, it’s not possible to fully prevent human error, which is why it is always critical to have adequate first-aid on-site.

Injuries on the Job with the Highest Fatality Rate

While there are certainly workplace hazards that exist within every environment, there are some industries and job sites that have a much higher rate of serious injury and death. Construction workers accounted for approximately 21% of all workplace injuries which led to death in 2016, according to OSHA. This shows just how treacherous and risky this job field can be, as it should not be taken lightly and should make a person in the construction injury especially aware that a false step can be their last.

Let’s take a closer look at which activities led to the most fatalities in this specific industry. In the field of construction, there are approximately 991 deaths in 2016, and a majority of these deaths resulted from four specific injury types. Falls were far and away the biggest category in regards to fatal injuries, as these accounted for over 38% of fatal injuries on the job in 2016. Workers within the construction field are usually engaged in activities that require them to walk high above the ground, increasing the chances that a fall could result in death.

The second most common fatal injury were accidents where an individual was struck by an object, accounting for just over 9% of workplace deaths in the construction field. On a construction work site, heavy materials and tools are incredibly common and the mishandling of such items can easily result in the death of a worker nearby. Hardhats are always recommended for use by construction workers for this very reason.

In 2016, electrocutions accounted for 82 deaths in the construction field, or approximately 8% of construction-related fatalities. The fourth-most common fatal injury in this field was the caught-in-between injury, which is when construction workers ended up caught in between equipment or collapsing structures. All of these injuries show just how dangerous the construction field can be for workers, as there are a large variety of ways in which a person can suffer a fatal incident.

It is important to seek out the services of a qualified workers’ compensation attorney that will advocate for your rights every step of the way. Mark Simon is someone who will fight tirelessly for your rights and ensure that you receive the highest possible settlement. He will begin the investigation process immediately, ensuring you receive the highest level of representation in the industry. If you have been injured on the job and are wondering what your options are, contact him today to discuss your legal options during a free consultation.