by James Parks, Nov 27, 2006

Seems that the more real estate prices skyrocket in places like New York City, the less attention developers appear to pay to safety codes as they push to get another highly priced building up as quickly as possible. And construction workers—mostly immigrants—are paying the cost in injuries and even death. 

Marc Dittenhoefer writes in the TortDeform blog that in 2004, five workers fell from scaffolds in New York City, two of whom died. Then:

In 2005, there were 23 construction job-related deaths. In 2006, there have been 11 accidents including four fatalities since August! In all, since 2003, 88 laborers have been killed on the job citywide, the largest number of which is attributable to falls from a height. Those who survive such falls are often catastrophically, life-alteringly injured forever. This has caused such commotion that a City Task Force was hastily created to focus on a plan to safeguard scaffold workers.

Read more of Dittenhoefer’s report by clicking here.

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