ABSTRACT
The construction industry has a reputation for being unsafe, due to its historically high rate of occupational accidents (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006). In the year 2006 alone, construction accounted for 21% of all deaths and 11% of all disabling injuries/illnesses in private industry in the United States. But no industry has a good record, some are just worse than others. It is often claimed that the nature of construction work makes accidents inevitable, but that is an unacceptable position to take.
