A fatal fall was among the OSHA enforcement cases finalized over the past few days – violations that show a persistent failure among some construction industry employers to address fall hazards. Falls are the leading cause of fatalities in construction. In Dayton, Ohio, a company that has been cited for fall protection violations five times since 2014 was cited once again.

A construction worker who watched two co-workers fall to their deaths at a hotel construction site in Florida last year is suing Marriott and its partner companies for failing to provide sufficient safeguards for workers. News sources say the August 29 incident occurred during construction of a 16-story hotel.

Two Susan Harwood Training Grant Program recipients have developed free training programs to help protect construction workers from fall hazards. The University of Tennessee training program offers three modules on OSHA's role in workplace safety, health and safety standards affecting construction workers, and preventing common types of falls at construction sites.

According to a report by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a high number of American workers were seriously injured or died on the job due to traumatic brain injuries. The study found that construction workers sustain more traumatic brain injuries than workers at any other type of workplace in the United States. Between 2003 to 2010, more than 2,200 construction workers died due to a traumatic brain injury.

Oregon OSHA has launched a free online course to help employers and workers across the state meet the agency’s requirements to eliminate fall hazards, prevent falls, and ensure that workers who do fall do not die. The two-hour course, “Fundamentals of Fall Protection,” includes six parts with 28 videos and is designed to supplement employers’ fall protection training programs.

Once again, fall-related violations were behind most of the biggest fines OSHA issued to construction companies in the second quarter of 2019. One of the contractors, Shawn D. Purvis, has been charged criminally in relation to a death that occurred on one of his company's jobsites.

A worker’s high-profile death at a baseball stadium, workplace violence at a car dealership and not all types of sitting are equally bad for your health. These were among the top occupational safety and health stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

A recent spate of construction deaths in the U.S. illustrate the dangers faced by workers in the industry – in a variety of circumstances. A fall from a highway killed a worker in Harris County, Texas June 21. News reports say the man, a subcontractor with Choctaw Construction who was from Mexico, fell to his death at the Highway 288 expansion project being developed by Blue Ridge Transportation.

California OSHA issued four citations and $68,438 in penalties to USF Reddaway Inc. after a worker was fatally struck by a tractor at a truck terminal. Inspectors found that the company failed to ensure operators were competent to operate terminal tractors and did not implement traffic controls. Visit OSHA's website for information on trucking industry safety.