Report details surge in Hispanic construction worker deaths

Silver Spring, MD — Fatalities among Hispanic construction workers more than doubled over a recent 12-year period, according to a report from CPWR – The Center for Construction Research and Training.

Researchers examined 2011-2022 data from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries and the IPUMS Current Population Survey. They identified 408 fatal workplace injuries involving Hispanic construction workers in 2022 – a 107.1% increase from 2011.

By comparison, deaths among non-Hispanic construction workers rose 16.5% over the same period, to 679 from 583.

Findings also show that from 2021 to 2022, 34.5% of nonfatal injuries involving days away from work and 47.3% of nonfatal injuries requiring days of job transfer or restriction involved Hispanic construction workers.

CPWR says the increased risk of injury that Hispanic construction workers face “is likely due to a combination of causes.” They include:

• Language barriers
• Cultural factors
• Increased likelihood of working for smaller employers, who typically have fewer safety programs
• Lack of training material available in Spanish

“CPWR, NIOSH and OSHA publish both English and Spanish materials to address both long-standing and emerging safety and health concerns in construction,” the researchers note.

The percentage of workers in the industry who are Hispanic increased to 34 in 2023 from 16.5 in 2000. In 2023, the construction occupations with the highest representation of Hispanic workers were drywall installation (75.2%), roofing (63.9%) and painting (62.5%).

The report was published in the December edition of CPWR’s Data Bulletin.