A look at the cost of fall injuries and how to prevent them

South Carolina employees may be interested in the cost of one type of on-the-job injury and how it may be prevented. It may take coordination between numerous entities to create a real culture of safety in the workplace.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, limiting fall injuries in the workplace is a task that requires the efforts of several entities, from the regulators and government authorities at the top to the employers and employees on the job. Experts working in this field must continue to develop and implement technologies that prevent falls. In the workplace itself, the culture must be changed to reflect the need to reduce this type of injury.

These efforts are necessary, as statistics show that hundreds of workers are killed and hundreds of thousands are injured every year due to falls. These falls can be the result of simply walking or climbing ladders on the job. While federal regulations already seek to prevent these injuries, consistent failure to adhere to those policies can make the job site a dangerous place. This lack of safety culture in the workplace has led to the rate of fall injuries staying steady over the years. Fall injuries are also quite expensive. Studies have shown that on-the-job injuries due to falls cost billions of dollars in workers’ compensation and medical expenses annually.

A worker who suffers an on-the-job injury due to a fall or other type of accident may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. An attorney with experience in this type of case may be able to help by assessing the employee’s injury and eligibility for coverage.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Fall Injuries Prevention in the Workplace”, accessed on Jan. 10, 2015