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Temporary Worker Fell from a Fixed Ladder inside a Building Being Renovated - Massachusetts
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2015/06/26
[PDF-291.54 KB]
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Description:On August 30, 2013, a 58-year-old male laborer (victim) employed by a staffing agency and placed with a commercial builder/property manager (host employer) fell from a fixed ladder. The victim was standing on the fixed ladder while helping the superintendent of the host employer place filters on a roof when he fell approximately 17 feet to the concrete floor below. The host employer's superintendent did not see the victim fall, but heard a crash and turned around to find the victim on the floor behind him. He then placed a call for emergency medical services (EMS). EMS, the fire department and the local police arrived at the incident location within minutes. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he died of his injuries two days later. Contributing factors identified in this investigation included roof access was only by a fixed ladder with no mechanism to get materials up to the roof, lack of training on ladders, and lack of a comprehensive contract between the staffing agency and the host employer. The Massachusetts FACE Program concluded that to prevent similar occurrences in the future, employers should: 1. Ensure that lifting mechanisms are available to get materials to a higher level when access is only by ladder; and 2. Ensure that employees are trained in the proper use of ladders, including maintaining three point contact with the ladder. To help prevent injuries and fatalities to temporary workers, staffing agencies and host employers must work together to inform workers about job hazards and provide training. Staffing agencies and host employers should: 3. Develop a comprehensive contract that clearly states the tasks that will be performed and outlines the training and safety responsibilities for which each the staffing agency and the host employer are responsible. In addition, commercial builders and architects should: 4. Adopt and implement the concept of Prevention through Design (PtD) to ensure the safety and health of the end users of their buildings, such as designing roof access with stairways instead of fix ladders.
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FACE - NIOSH and State:
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Pages in Document:1-8
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NIOSHTIC Number:20046894
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NTIS Accession Number:PB2016-100052
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Citation:Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 13MA026, 2015 Jun; :1-8
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Federal Fiscal Year:2015
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Performing Organization:Massachusetts State Department of Public Health
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Peer Reviewed:False
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Start Date:2005/07/01
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End Date:2026/06/30
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Resource Number:FACE-13MA026
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