July 2014 Archives

A Pennsylvania temp worker was killed in a sugar plant accident in February 2013 in Fairless Hills. The man was breaking up clumps in a sugar hopper when he slid into it and was killed by suffocation. The sugar plant had initially had a safety screen in the hopper, but it was removed 13 days before the accident because the manager at the plant believed that it was slowing production.

The summer of 2014 has been consumed with news about auto recalls. General Motors has been at the center of this news, with millions of cars recalled because of ignition switch concerns. The embattled automaker has even gone as far as taking out full page ads in newspapers advising consumers to use a single key in the ignition as a protective measure. Other GM recalls concern headlamp malfunctions and steering column issues.

Former “30 Rock” and “Saturday Night Live” star Tracy Morgan has been released from the rehabilitative center where he had been recovering after spending several weeks in a New Jersey hospital. Morgan was seriously injured in the midst of a crash with a semi-truck owned by Wal-Mart.

One worker was killed and eight others were hospitalized after an explosion that occurred in a General Motors plant on July 2. Quaker Chemical Corp., a Pennsylvania-based chemical manufacturer that provides contract services at the plant, announced that the decedent was one of its employees. The incident occurred at the company's metal-stamping facility near Fort Wayne, Indiana at approximately 1:50 p.m. According to the news source, a spokesperson for the automaker sent out an e-mail stating that a member of a contract team was killed by a 'small chemical explosion."

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 3.2 workers out of 100,000 died in workplace accidents in 2012. This means that there were 4,628 fatalities across all occupations that year, which is on the low end of the yearly average 4,500 to 6,500. Some workers in Pennsylvania may be surprised to find that they have jobs in industries with the highest fatality rates. The fifth deadliest job is that of a fisherman or other sea-based worker. They have a fatality rate of 117 workers in 100,000, with 32 fatalities in 2012. Most of these deaths occurred during vessel disasters. In the aircraft industry, which is the fourth most dangerous, 71 engineers, co-pilots and pilots died due to plane crashes and equipment failures. This type of job has a fatality rate of 53.4 workers in 100,000. Construction workers have the third most dangerous jobs, with 210 deaths in 2012. With a death rate of 17.4 workers in 100,000, the most common causes are falls, trips and slips. With only a few more deaths that same year, agricultural managers and farmers have the second deadliest jobs. The fatality rate for the agricultural industry is 21.3 workers in 100,000 due to roadway and equipment accidents. The most dangerous job, however, is driving a truck. Driving a truck, whether it is a semi or a light delivery truck, is the most dangerous by far. In 2012, 741 people in this occupation lost their lives, and the death rate is 22.1 people in 100,000. In Pennsylvania, workers' compensation may cover workers who are injured on the job. State laws require all employers to provide some type of coverage to their employees, whether it is workers' compensation, self-insurance or some other method. The insurance could provide wage-loss, medical care and disfigurement benefits to injured workers. Additionally, the dependents of workers who die on the job may receive death benefits. Source: Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, 'About Workers' Compensation"

This weekend, scores of people who ride motorcycles will be on the road travelling throughout Pennsylvania. The weather is ideal, and the celebrations for the height of the summer are bound to bring more people out than usual. As a matter of fact, AAA estimates that more than 40 million Americans across the country will be on the road. Because of this, the likelihood of accidents increases.