April 25, 2024

Puncture injuries and falls through skylights

As a service to our policyholders, Texas Mutual shares serious workplace injury trends based on catastrophic injuries and fatalities reported to our claims department. Not all of these reported injuries are covered by workers’ compensation, but our goal is to help you ensure these types of incidents do not happen in your workplace. Find safety tips below to help keep your employees safe on the job.

If you have questions, we encourage you to contact our safety services support center at 844-WORKSAFE (967-5723) or safety@texasmutual.com.

In this alert:

• Puncture injuries
• Falls through skylights

Puncture injuries

An employee was installing a grounding rod using a t-post driver. The employee was later found with a puncture wound near their eye from the rod and, unfortunately, did not survive this injury. In a separate incident, an employee was attempting to climb over a balcony railing. The employee jumped down and landed on a pole, which caused a puncture wound that resulted in serious injuries.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), in 2021 and 2022 combined there were 5,180 nonfatal workplace injuries due to puncture wounds caused by employees striking against a stationary object. It’s important to take precautions while working near impalement hazards such as metal stakes, poles and rebar.

• Keep the work area well-lit so exposed rebar, sharp objects and other hazards can be spotted.
• Wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) such as safety glasses and puncture-resistant gloves
  and clothing.
• Place barricades or hazard warnings around areas with sharp objects.
• Cover the ends of rebar and other protruding stakes with steel end caps.

Falls through skylights

An employee was working on a roof and accidentally stepped on a skylight without noticing it. In a separate incident, a new employee fell through a skylight while working on a roof. Both employees fell about 30 feet to the ground and suffered serious injuries.

In the past 10 months there have been five serious claims reported involving an employee falling through a skylight. In Texas, ultraviolet rays from the sun weaken skylights throughout the summer, making them an exceptionally dangerous hazard.

• Before roofing work begins, inspect the area for any unguarded skylights, holes or edges and alert your
  supervisor of any potential fall hazards.
• Clear the surrounding area of any unnecessary materials, debris or other tripping hazards.
• Do not work around skylights without proper fall prevention or protection measures in place.
• Never sit or step on a skylight or its covering.

Get free safety resources

Texas Mutual policyholders have access to thousands of free training materials in our multimedia safety resource center, including our safety catalog with up-to-date resources.

To access the free materials, log in to your texasmutual.com account and select Safety. If you need help accessing the safety resource center or you have a workplace safety question, call us toll-free at 844-WORKSAFE (967-5723).

Download a PDF (173KB) version of the April Safety Alert.