Evening star., 1960-10-02
B|evins Praises BroyhiII;
ABC Yields Board Control
sCAFFoLD DEATHS CITED
Construction Injuries Rise
BY MIRIAM GUTENBERG
Star Stan Writer

star Stau Wrlter
"They didn't have a prayer"
Thus, the Districts industrial
safety director, Fred C. Thom-
as, described the deaths Of two
workmen who plunged from
Scaffolding at the Supreme
Court Building Tuesday.
Mr.. Thomas reported his in
vestigation showed that the
single plank on which the men
were standing had been so
weakened by knot in the wood
that 1t collapsed under their
combined weight.
The Supreme Court tragedy
was one of a series of construc-
ton job accidents here last
week. The Star found that the
frequency rate Of disabling or
"lost time" injuries in the con-
struction industry in Washing
ton has risen steadily since
1855. The rate is based on the
frequency Of injuries per mil
lion man hours worked.
Local Fatalities High
The rate has risen from As
in 1855 to $50 in 1860. This is
far higher than the national
average among construction
workers. The latest available
national figures are for 1858.
For that year. the Associated
General Contractors Of America
reported a frequency rate Of in
juries at 34.0S. The Bureau Of
Labor Statistics reported a rate
lof 800. In Washington, the
frequency rate in 1858 was 51.9.
The range between the local
and national figures may not
be quite as broad as the figures
indicate because the national
figures come from a wide SAM
pling Of the more cooperative
employers while the District
figures come from the reports
of all employers in the indus
try and cover employees who
may have been injured on Jobs
outside the District. These are
reported here because the en-
lployers are based here.
Nevertheless, the figures for
1.-THE District alone show an up
ward trend. There are other
indications. Construction acci-
dents accounted for nearly 40
per cent of the increase in the
number Of disabling injuries
reported here in 1859, COM
pared with 1858.
During fiscal 1859 and 1850,
fourteen workmen were killed
each year on construction jobs.
Since the beginning Of fiscal
1861. July brought two deaths
in the construction industry,
August brought three and Sep
tember brought thgee.
Why?
Employers Usaally Help
Mr.. Thomas summed up the
attitude of some contractors
this way: Generally speak
ing" he sad. employers CO.
operate. We seldom get the op-
position We used to get when
the law first went into effect
Gin 194Ni What is lacking is
the acceptance of responsibility
to meet the law without having
to have 1t continually pointed
out" n =
Employers, however, can pro-
vide all the safety devices re-
qtired by the safety code and
some Eorkmen won't use them.
Mr.. Thomas cited one case
where the employer had pro-
vided a saw guard. A workman
hitehed the guard into a posi-
tion where it was only partially
effective and cut of three fln-
gers. When the inspectors
c,fne the next day, another
workman was using the same
guard in the same position.
7 An engineer commented that
experience breeds contempt.
He said he had found himself
that as he grew older and more
experienced, he took more
chances.
It was pointed out also that
as the construction industry
has doomed here, more mex
perienced workmen have gotten
jobs.
Workers Reluctant
Mr.. Thomas cited cases where
iron workers have walked off
a job rather than haul planks
for their own safety; where
steel helmets have been dis
carded on projects where heavy
falling objects could cause
damage: where life preserverS
have lain on the pier unworn
by bridge builders because hot
weather makes them uncom-
Portable, and where safety belts
and protective railings have
been ignored.
The larger and long-estab-
lished construction firms here
have EN- phasized safety
through weekly meetings in
collaboration with insurance
companies and unions, through
appointment of safety officers