Occupational accidents with ladders in Spain: Risk factors

Introduction

Occupational accidents suffered by workers in Spain when using ladders were analyzed over a six year period from 2003-2008, during which the total of notified ladder-related accidents amounted to 21,725. Method: Different accident-related factors were identified for the purpose of developing a pattern of those factors that had the greatest influence on the seriousness and the fatality of such accidents. Thus, a series of variables were examined such as age and length of service of the injured worker, firm size, the work sector, the injury suffered, and the part of the body that was injured. Since falls is the most frequent and most serious of ladder related occupational accidents, a special analysis of falls was performed. Results: The findings showed that the seriousness of ladder-related accidents increased with the age of the injured worker. Likewise, accidents at places other than the usual workplace were more serious and registered higher fatalities than those that occurred at the usual place of work. Conclusions: The analysis of falls from ladders established that accidents in smaller-sized firms were of greater seriousness and involved more fatalities than those in larger-sized firms. The investigation also underlined the need for stricter compliance with preliminary safety assessments when working with ladders.     

Factors associated with motorcycle traffic crash fatalities among active duty U.S. Army personnel

Objective: Research on factors associated with motorcycle fatalities among active duty U.S. Army personnel is limited. This analysis describes motorcycle crash–related injuries from 1995 through 2014 and assesses the effect of alcohol use and helmet use on the risk of fatal injury among active duty U.S. Army motorcycle operators involved in a traffic crash, controlling for other factors shown to be potentially associated with fatality in this population.

Methods: Demographics, crash information, and injury data were obtained from safety reports maintained in the Army Safety Management Information System. Traffic crashes were defined as crashes occurring on a paved public or private roadway or parking area, including those on a U.S. Army installation. Analysis was limited to motorcycle operators. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) from a multivariable analysis estimated the effect of alcohol use and helmet use on the risk of a fatal injury given a crash occurred, controlling for operator and crash characteristics.

Results: Of the 2,852 motorcycle traffic crashes, most involved men (97%), operators aged 20–29 years of age (60%), and operators who wore helmets (95%) and did not use alcohol (92%). Two thirds of reported crashes resulted in injuries requiring a lost workday; 17% resulted in fatality. Controlling for operator and crash characteristics, motorcycle traffic crashes involving operators who had used alcohol had a 3.1 times higher odds of fatality than those who did not use alcohol (OR =3.14; 95% CI, 2.17–4.53). Operators who did not wear a helmet had 1.9 times higher odds of fatality than those who did wear a helmet (OR =1.89; 95% CI, 1.24–2.89).

Conclusions: Among U.S. Army motorcycle operators, alcohol use and not wearing a helmet increased the odds of fatality, given that a crash occurred, and additional modifiable risk factors were identified. Results will help inform U.S. Army motorcycle policies and training.     

Quantification of risk perception: Development and validation of the construction worker risk perception (CoWoRP) scale

Introduction: The construction sector is leading in the number of accidents and fatalities; risk perception is the key to driving these numbers. Previous construction safety studies on risk perception quantification have not considered affective risk perception of construction workers or conducted comprehensive reliability and validity testing. Thus, this study aims to fill this need by developing a psychometrically sound instrument – the Construction Worker Risk Perception (CoWoRP) Scale – to assess the risk perception of construction workers. Method: Four phases of scale development, namely, item development, factor analysis, reliability assessment, and validity assessment were conducted with the collection and testing of data from a group (n = 469) of voluntary construction workers in Hong Kong. Results: The CoWoRP Scale with 13 items was shown to have acceptable test–retest reliability, internal consistency reliability, as well as content, convergent, discriminant, and criterion-related validity. Also, the CoWoRP Scale was affirmed to have three dimensions of worker risk perception, namely risk perception – probability, risk perception – severity, risk perception – worry and unsafe. These three dimensions of worker risk perception were negatively correlated with their risk-taking behavior. Conclusions: The CoWoRP Scale is a reliable and valid instrument for measuring the risk perception of construction workers and is expected to facilitate the construction safety studies that take risk perception of construction workers into account. Practical applications: The CoWoRP Scale could serve as an aptitude test to identify the characteristics of construction workers most likely to perceive lower risk in risky work situations. In turn, this information could help safety management provide safety training programs to those workers to enhance their risk perception and thereby minimizing their risk-taking behavior, reducing unnecessary training costs, and improving the construction safety performance.     

Occupational electrical injuries in the United States, 1992-1998, and recommendations for safety research

PROBLEM: CFOI and SOII data show that 2,287 U.S. workers died and 32,807 workers sustained days away from work due to electrical shock or electrical burn injuries between 1992 and 1998. METHOD: The narrative, work activity, job title, source of injury, location, and industry for each fatal electrical accident were examined. A primary causal factor was identified for each fatality. RESULTS: Electrical fatalities were categorized into five major groups. Overall, 44% of electrical fatalities occurred in the construction industry. Contact with overhead power lines caused 41% of all electrical fatalities. DISCUSSION: Electrical shock caused 99% of fatal and 62% of nonfatal electrical accidents. Comprising about 7% of the U.S. workforce, construction workers sustain 44% of electrical fatalities. Power line contact by mobile equipment occurs in many industries and should be the subject of focused research. Other problem areas are identified and opportunities for research are proposed. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: Improvements in electrical safety in one industry often have application in other industries.     

Investigating traffic fatality trends and restraint use among rear-seat passengers in the United States, 2000–2016

Introduction: Motor-vehicle crash is one of the leading causes of unintentional injury death in the United States. Previous studies focused on fatalities among drivers and front-seat passengers, with a limited number of studies examining rear-seat passenger fatalities. The objectives of this study were to assess trends in rear-seat passenger motor-vehicle fatalities in the United States from 2000 to 2016 and to identify demographic factors associated with being unrestrained among fatally injured rear-seat passengers. Methods: Rear-seat passenger fatality data were obtained from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) database. The fatality rate ratios for overall rear-seat passengers and for different age and sex groups were determined by comparing fatality rates in 2000 and 2016 using random effects models. Risk ratios of being unrestrained for age and sex groups were obtained using general estimating equations. Results: Compared to 2000, the overall rear-seat passenger fatality rate in 2016 decreased by 44% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 39–49%). In particular, the fatality rate among rear-seat passengers decreased more in males than females, and passengers aged 14–19 years experienced a larger decline than all other age groups. Fatally injured male rear-seat passengers had a higher risk of being unrestrained (adjusted risk ratio: 1.06, 95% CI: 1.04–1.07) than their female counterparts, and both youngest (≤13 years) and oldest (65–85 years) passengers were less likely to be unrestrained than those aged 20–64 years. Conclusions: Overall, fatality rates among rear-seat passengers have declined, with differential degrees of improvement by age and sex. Practical Applications: Continued restraint use enforcement campaigns targeted at teenagers and males would further preserve them from fatal injuries and improve traffic safety for the overall population.     

Temporary jobs and the severity of workplace accidents

Introduction. From the point of view of workplace safety, it is important to know whether having a temporary job has an effect on the severity of workplace accidents. We present an empirical analysis on the severity of workplace accidents by type of contract. Method. We used microdata collected by the Italian national institute managing the mandatory insurance against work related accidents. We estimated linear models for a measure of the severity of the workplace accident. We controlled for time-invariant fixed effects at worker and firm levels to disentangle the impact of the type of contract from the spurious one induced by unobservables at worker and firm levels. Results. Workers with a temporary contract, if subject to a workplace accident, were more likely to be confronted with severe injuries than permanent workers. When correcting the statistical analysis for injury under-reporting of temporary workers, we found that most of, but not all, the effect is driven by the under-reporting bias. Conclusions. The effect of temporary contracts on the injury severity survived the inclusion of worker and firm fixed effects and the correction for temporary workers' injury under-reporting. This, however, does not exclude the possibility that, within firms, the nature of the work may vary between different categories of workers. For example, temporary workers might be more likely to be assigned dangerous tasks because they might have less bargaining power. Practical implications. The findings will help in designing public policy effective in increasing temporary workers' safety at work and limiting their injury under-reporting.     

Work-safety tension, perceived risk, and worker injuries: a meso-mediational model

IntroductionWork-safety tension arises when workers perceive that working safely is at odds with effectively doing their jobs. We proposed that workers’ perceptions of work-safety tension would be associated with higher levels of perceived risk, which would, in turn, relate to worker injuries on the job.MethodGrocery store workers (n = 600) completed an online survey and organizational worker injury reports were obtained for a two-year period following the survey. Survey results were linked to subsequent worker injuries using hierarchical generalized linear modeling.ResultsWe found support for the proposed meso-mediation model: department work-safety tension predicted subsequent worker injuries, partially through an association with workers’ risk perceptions.ConclusionsSafety researchers and consultants and organizational leaders should look beyond typically-examined safety climate constructs, such as management commitment to safety, and pay particular attention to workers’ perceptions of work-safety tension.     

Analysis of fatalities and injuries involving mining equipment

INTRODUCTION: Despite significant reductions, the number of injuries and fatalities in mining remains high. A persistent area of concern continues to be equipment-related incidents. METHOD: Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) and Current Population Survey (CPS) data were used to examine equipment-related injuries over the period 1995-2004. Incidents were reviewed to determine which types of mining equipment were most often involved and to identify and characterize trends. RESULTS: Non-powered hand tools was the equipment category most often involved with non-fatal injuries while off-road ore haulage was the most common source of fatalities. SUMMARY: Younger employees had an elevated risk of injury while workers >55 years had an elevated risk for fatality. A large majority of incidents involve workers with <5 years experience. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: Results should increase hazard awareness and enable mine management to select and prioritize problem areas and safety system weaknesses in both underground and surface mining.     

Visibility-related fatalities related to construction equipment

The construction industry annually experiences one of the highest fatality rates among the industrial sectors in the United States. The factors that contribute to this reputation include the nature of the work, human behavior, the tools and equipment involved, and also the compact work zones. Industrial fatalities are investigated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). While OSHA groups the causes of fatalities into a few general categories, too little information is gleaned to effectively target specific problem areas.To improve safety performance in the construction industry, it is necessary to understand the underlying causes of accidents. With targeted analysis, patterns emerge and causal factors can be identified. These findings may then be used to form the basis for recommendations that will help to improve construction worker safety. Little research has been conducted in this area.Research was conducted that isolated fatalities in which vision or lack of good visibility was the principle factor or contributing cause. The objective of examining the details surrounding these fatalities was to uncover the contributing factors and to identify the agents that compromised visibility. The study identified 659 fatality accidents from a data pool of 13511 OSHA-investigated cases. It was discovered that blind spots, obstructions and lighting conditions were the most common factors contributing to vision-related fatalities. This research also analyzed the specific conditions associated with particular pieces of construction equipment.     

The role of behavioral factors on safety management in underground mines

Traditional approaches on the prevention of accidents/injuries in mines reached its limit of effectiveness in improving safety performance and a fresh approach is utmost required. Behavioral safety analysis has been identified as an effective alternative in many industries. This paper is therefore sought to examine the role of behavioral factors on the occurrence of mine accidents and injuries through a case study. Data were collected from two neighboring underground coalmines operating under a large public sector organization of India. High–low plots and t-test were done to explore the differences between behavioral characteristics of accident involved (case) and non-involved (control) workers. How these differences could cause accidents/injuries in mines was estimated through structural equation modeling. The case study results show that accident group of workers (cases) are more job dissatisfied, negatively affected, and highly risk taking compared to the non-accident group of workers (controls). The accident model path analysis shows that negative affectivity, job dissatisfaction, and risk taking behaviors predict an increased number of injuries in mines. Apart from direct influences to work injuries, negative affectivity and job dissatisfaction make workers to take more risks and behave unsafely. These findings contribute to the design of safety programs including safety training, which should be behaviorally motivated. Mine safety management of the case study mines should outskirt their age old belief that accidents/injuries are due to hazardous nature of mining and only engineering control and regulatory monitoring are sufficient for improving safety of the mines. The multivariate analysis also shows that experience bears no relationships with work injury indicating that a less experienced worker is equally likely to be injured as an experienced worker. It implies that experience though helps workers in understanding the physical hazards, however, avoiding the imminent danger is much more behavioral. The variables negative affectivity, job dissatisfaction, and risk taking behaviors are therefore crucial in avoiding accident/injuries in mines.     

Hierarchical ordered model for injury severity of pedestrian crashes in South Korea

Introduction: The high percentage of fatalities in pedestrian-involved crashes is a critical social problem. The purpose of this study is to investigate factors influencing injury severity in pedestrian crashes by examining the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the regions where crashes occurred. Method: To understand the correlation between the unobserved characteristics of pedestrian crashes in a defined region, we apply a hierarchical ordered model, in which we set crash characteristics as lower-level variables and municipality characteristics as upper-level. Pedestrian crash data were collected and analyzed for a three-year period from 2011 to 2013. The estimation results show the statistically significant factors that increase injury severity of pedestrian crashes. Results: At the crash level, the factors associated with increased severity of pedestrian injury include intoxicated drivers, road-crossing pedestrians, elderly pedestrians, heavy vehicles, wide roads, darkness, and fog. At the municipality level, municipalities with low population density, lower level of financial independence, fewer doctors, and a higher percentage of elderly residents experience more severe pedestrian crashes. Municipalities ranked as having the top 10% pedestrian fatality rate (fatalities per 100,000 residents) have rates 7.4 times higher than municipalities with the lowest 10% rate of fatalities. Their demographic and socioeconomic characteristics also have significant differences. The proposed model accounts for a 7% unexplained variation in injury severity outcomes between the municipalities where crashes occurred. Conclusion: To enhance the safety of vulnerable pedestrians, considerable investments of time and effort in pedestrian safety facilities and zones should be made. More certain and severe punishments should be also given for the traffic violations that increase injury severity of pedestrian crashes. Furthermore, central and local governments should play a cooperative role to reduce pedestrian fatalities. Practical applications: Based on our study results, we suggest policy directions to enhance pedestrian safety.     

Road traffic accident severity analysis: A census-based study in China

Background: In China, despite the decrease in average road traffic fatalities per capita, the fatality rate and injury rate have been increasing until 2015. Purpose: This study aims to analyze the road traffic accident severity in China from a macro viewpoint and various aspects and illuminate several key causal factors. From these analyses, we propose possible countermeasures to reduce accident severity. Method: The severity of traffic accidents is measured by human damage (HD) and case fatality rate (CFR). Different categorizations of national road traffic census data are analyzed to evaluate the severity of different types of accidents and further to demonstrate the key factors that contribute to the increase in accident severity. Regional data from selected major municipalities and provinces are also compared with national traffic census data to verify data consistency. Results: From 2000 to 2016, the overall CFR and HD of road accidents in China have increased by 19.0% and 63.7%, respectively. In 2016, CFR of freight vehicles is 33.5% higher than average; late-night accidents are more fatal than those that occur at other periods. The speeding issue is severely becoming worse. In 2000, its CFR is only 5.3% higher than average, while in 2016, the number is 42.0%. Conclusion and practical implementation: A growing trend of accident severity was found to be contrasting to the decline of road traffic accidents. From the analysis of casual factors, it was confirmed that the release way of the impact energy and the protection worn by the victims are key variables contributing to the severity of road traffic accidents.     

An analysis of human factors in fifty controlled flight into terrain aviation accidents from 2007 to 2017

Introduction: Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) account for a considerable amount of fatalities when compared to other accident categories. Human factors are deemed significant contributory causes in these accidents. This paper aims to identify the human factors involved with aviation accidents that resulted in CFIT. Method: The study used the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS) framework to determine the factors involved in 50 CFIT accidents from 24 counties over a 10 year period, i.e. 2007–2017. Interviews with five senior aviation safety experts were used to provide a better comprehension of the human factors affecting the flight safety. Results: The study identified 1289 individual causal and contributory human factors with unsafe actions and preconditions for unsafe actions being the main subcategories of the accidents. The study found that CFIT occur across a range of pilot experience and 44% of accidents occurred in cruise flight. Distraction, complacency and fatigue are all elements that flight crews may experience as contributors to CFIT during cruising. Conclusions: Human factors represent a major component of CFIT accidents. The analysis revealed a similar pattern of contributory and causal human factors across the various flight categories, with some noteworthy isolated variations. The prevalent factors were decision and skill-based errors along with communication, coordination and planning issues. Practical applications: Provision of specific CFIT awareness, pilot training focusing on improved decision-making and revision of basic flight skills, development of specific Global Positioning System routes for transiting high terrain areas are necessary to prevent CFIT accidents. Installation of Terrain Avoidance and Warning System and Ground Proximity Warning System and appropriate equipment training, specific CFIT Crew Resource Management training and improvement of organizational knowledge on the elements involved in CFIT are also recommended.     

The acceptance of personal protective equipment among Hong Kong construction workers: An integration of technology acceptance model and theory of planned behavior with risk perception and safety climate

Introduction: The phenomenon that construction workers do not use personal protective equipment (PPE) is a major reason for the high occurrence frequency of accidents in the construction industry. However, little efforts have been made to quantitatively examine the factors influencing construction workers’ acceptance of PPE. Method: In the current study, a PPE acceptance model for construction workers (PAMCW) was proposed to address the noted need. The PAMCW incorporates the technology acceptance model, theory of planned behavior, risk perception, and safety climate for explaining construction worker acceptance of PPE. 413 construction workers participated in this study to fill out a structured questionnaire. The PAMCW was analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results: Results provide evidence of the applicability of the technology acceptance model and theory of planned behavior to the PPE acceptance among construction workers. The positive influence of safety climate and risk perception-severity on attitude toward using PPE was significant. Safety climate positively influences perceived usefulness. Risk perception-worry and unsafe was found to positively affect intention to use PPE. Practical Applications: Practical suggestions for increasing construction workers’ use of PPE are also discussed.     

Predicting road safety behavior with implicit attitudes and the Theory of Planned Behavior

Introduction The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) is one of the most widely used psychological models when it comes to explaining road safety behaviors. Recently, studies have also been conducted from the perspective of dual-process models. However, the present is the first study on road safety behaviors that integrates both perspectives. The study evaluates the roles of both implicit attitudes and TPB constructs in the prediction of seatbelt use. Method A sample of 100 drivers completed: (1) a self-reporting instrument on seatbelt use, (2) a questionnaire addressing TPB constructs, (3) an indirect measure of attitudes (Implicit Association Test), and (4) a social desirability scale. Results Results suggest that both types of attitudes make a significant and quite similar contribution to the explanation of seatbelt use. Interestingly, implicit attitudes were a better predictor than explicit attitudes among participants reporting inconsistent seatbelt use. In addition, path analysis models suggested that implicit attitudes appear to be relatively independent of TPB constructs and have a direct effect on seatbelt use. Conclusion The findings advance the idea of adding implicit attitudes to variables from the TPB model in order to increase the explanatory power of models used to predict road safety behaviors. Practical applications Potential use of implicit attitude measures in the education and training of drivers are discussed.     

Investigating safety of vulnerable road users in selected EU countries

Problem: Vulnerable road users comprise over half of all road accident victims in the EU and their safety situation is not improving as fast as for motorists. The paper examines factors affecting fatality risk of pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists, and moped riders in seven EU countries using data from CARE database. Method: Comparing accident severity indicators between countries is problematic because of data quality issues, different degree of underreporting, and different exposure levels. To avoid bias arising from these issues, fatality risk is modeled with binary logistic regression. Risk factors considered include accident location by area type, junction type, and traffic control, as well as lighting condition. Results are presented as odds ratios of fatal accident outcome in different countries under specific circumstances compared to reference conditions. It is shown that the error in OR values due to underreporting is small. Results and discussion: Wide confidence intervals of the odds ratios in some countries confirm problems with accident data quality. Fatality risk is always higher for non-urban versus urban area and for darkness versus daylight conditions, but the odds ratios are different for different countries. Inconsistent results are obtained for accident location with respect to junction and its control type. Possible reasons for these differences are suggested and discussed. Practical applications: The proposed method avoids the data quality bias of accident severity indicators, thus, it can be used in international comparisons of vulnerable road user accidents. The article findings also support the concept of changes in legislation, such as reducing the speed limit in urban areas in Poland at night. Generally, the experience of countries with low VRU fatality risk identified in the article can be transferred to those with a higher risk.     

Characteristics of worker accidents on NYSDOT construction projects

INTRODUCTION: This paper aims at providing cost-effective safety measures to protect construction workers in highway work zones, based on real data. Two types of accidents that occur in work zones were: (a) construction work area accidents, and (b) traffic accidents involving construction worker(s). METHODOLOGY/RESULTS: A detailed analysis of work zone accidents involving 36 fatalities and 3,055 severe injuries to construction workers on New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) construction projects from 1990 to 2001 established that five accident types: (a) Struck/Pinned by Large Equipment, (b) Trip or Fall (elevated), (c) Contact w/Electrical or Gas Utility, (d) Struck-by Moving/Falling Load, and (e) Crane/Lift Device Failure accounted for nearly 96% of the fatal accidents, nearly 63% of the hospital-level injury accidents, and nearly 91% of the total costs. These construction work area accidents had a total cost of $133.8 million. Traffic accidents that involve contractors' employees were also examined. Statistical analyses of the traffic accidents established that five traffic accident types: (a) Work Space Intrusion, (b) Worker Struck-by Vehicle Inside Work Space, (c) Flagger Struck-by Vehicle, (d) Worker Struck-by Vehicle Entering/Exiting Work Space, and (e) Construction Equipment Struck-by Vehicle Inside Work Space accounted for nearly 86% of the fatal, nearly 70% of the hospital-level injury and minor injury traffic accidents, and $45.4 million (79.4%) of the total traffic accident costs. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this paper provide real statistics on construction worker related accidents reported on construction work zones. Potential preventions based on real statistics have also been suggested. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY: The ranking of accident types, both within the work area as well as in traffic, will guide the heavy highway contractor and owner agencies in identifying the most cost effective safety preventions.     

Crash risk factors for novice motorcycle riders

Background: Motorcycle riders have the highest injury and fatality rates among all road users. This research sought in-depth understanding of crash risk factors to help in developing targeted measures to reduce motorcycle crash injuries and fatalities. Methods: We used interview data from a study of 2,399 novice motorcycle riders in Victoria, Australia from 2010 to 2012 linked with their police-recorded crash and offence data. The outcome measure was self and/or police reported crash. The association between potential risk factors and crashes was explored in multivariable logistic regression models. Results: In the multivariable analysis, riders who reported being involved in three or more near crashes had 1.74 times (95% CI 1.11–2.74) higher odds of crashing compared to riders who reported no near-crash events, and riders who participated in a pre-learner course had 1.41 times higher odds of crashing (95% CI 1.07–1.87) compared with riders who did not attend a pre-learner course. Riders who had been involved in a crash before the study had 1.58 times (95% CI 1.14–2.19) higher odds of crashing during the study period compared with riders who were not involved in a crash. Each additional month of having held a license and learner permit decreased the odds of crashing by 2%, and each additional 1,000 km of riding before the study increased the odds of crashing by 2%. Conclusion: Measures of pre-learner training and riding experience were the strongest predictors of crashing in this cohort of novice motorcycle riders. At the time of the study there was no compulsory rider training to obtain a learner permit in Victoria and no on-road courses were available. It may be plausible that riders who voluntarily participated in an unregulated pre-learner course became or remained at high risk of crash after obtaining a rider license. We suggest systematically reviewing the safety benefits of voluntary versus mandatory pre-learner and learner courses and the potential need to include on-road components.