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National Safety Stand-Down highlights fall hazards in construction

May 05, 2026

The National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction highlights fall hazards and emphasizes the importance of fall prevention in the construction industry. The National Safety Stand-Down is being observed this year from May 4 to May 8.

In 2024, there were 1,034 workplace deaths in the private-sector construction industry. Over one-third (389) of fatal injuries in construction were due to falls, slips, and trips, and 95.9 percent of these were falls to a lower level. Construction accounted for almost half (48.8 percent) of all fatal falls, slips, and trips in private industry in 2024.

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Chart Data

Fatal falls, slips, and trips in selected private industries, 2024
Industry	Number of fatal falls, slips, and trips
Construction	389
Trade, transportation, and utilities	104
Manufacturing	52
Leisure and hospitality	38
Natural resources and mining	32
Other services (except public administration)	30
Financial activities	18
Education and health services	17

Within the private construction industry, nonfatal workplace falls, slips, and trips that resulted in at least 1 day away from work occurred at an annualized rate of 30.0 cases per 10,000 full-time workers during 2024. The rate for this event across all private industry was 22.6. Nonfatal falls to a lower level that required at least 1 day away from work happened at an annualized rate of 13.9 cases per 10,000 full-time workers in private-sector construction, while the overall rate for private industry was 4.1.

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Chart Data

Annualized rates of nonfatal falls, slips, and trips involving days away from work per 10,000 full-time private-industry workers, 2024
Event or exposure	All private industry	Construction
Falls, slips, and trips	22.6	30.0
Fall to lower level	4.1	13.9
Slip, trip, stumble, or fall on same level	14.7	11.0
Fall, trip, or stumble while stepping between levels	3.7	5.0

These data are from the Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities program. To learn more about injuries and illnesses in the workplace, see “Employer-Reported Workplace Injuries and Illnesses — 2023–2024.” We also have more charts on nonfatal injuries and illnesses. To learn more about fatal work injuries, see "National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2024" and accompanying charts.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, National Safety Stand-Down highlights fall hazards in construction at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2026/national-safety-stand-down-highlights-fall-hazards-in-construction.htm (visited May 05, 2026).

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