The sharp increase in smartphone and cellphone usage in recent years - an estimated 156 million Americans now have a smartphone, up from only 3.5 million less than 10 years ago - has led to the rapid construction or refurbishing of countless cellphone signal towers around the country. Tragically, with the sudden increased pace of tower construction has come skyrocketing rates of serious workplace injuries and fatalities among the people tasked with maintaining communication beacons around the country.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has taken notice of this emerging area of concern, and has publicly admonished cellphone carriers, so-called "turf vendors" tasked with handling tower construction and contractors/subcontractors hired as part of the process, about the importance of safety. OSHA reports that 13 people died on cellphone tower sites in 2013, and there have already been several deaths in 2014 because of:
- Falls (many involve workers who are not properly tethered to the tower by a safety harness even though such gear is required)
- Being struck by falling objects
- Collapsing tower structures
- Equipment failures
Who's responsible?
Even in the face of blatant safety violations on a cellphone tower jobsite that clearly contributed to a fatal accident, it may be difficult for OSHA to determine who is ultimately responsible. That is why many of similar injuries and deaths result in no OSHA-issued citations, and why it is so hard to implement regulations aimed directly at making these sites less hazardous. For example, a major cellphone carrier like AT&T or Verizon might not handle its own tower construction; they may contract out such work to a "turf vendor," a construction company responsible for overseeing the project. That vendor may then contract out all or a portion of the labor to another company, who may also use their own subcontractor.
In the above example, there are three levels of authority in between the injured worker and the carrier. Unless OSHA or other regulatory authorities can prove that either the carrier's representatives were on the job site or intimately familiar with the safety parameters in place on it, current federal regulations won't assign liability. There seems to be a fair amount of "finger-pointing" in these cases, with the majority of the involved companies blaming one another for the lack of safety precautions being taken in the field.
Tie-ins with work comp
For people injured on the job, their first opportunity for benefits to cover medical expenses and lost wages is the workers' compensation program. Such programs provide medical care, lost wages and, if needed, disability payments to injured workers.
For cellphone tower workers, just trying to figure out who their "employer" is for purposes of a claim can be tricky because of the same technicalities that make it difficult for OSHA and other safety regulators to monitor jobsite safety. Are they "employed" by the subcontractor who placed them at the worksite? The turf vendor who awarded the subcontractor the job? Or, since they are performing the duties to the benefit of the carrier, should the carrier be considered their employer?
In theory, filing a claim sounds relatively simple, but it's actually a complex process that, if not exactingly prepared, can lead to your claim being denied. Though it is possible to appeal a denied claim, it is easiest and much quicker to just do it right the first time. If you or a loved one has been hurt on the job, speak with an experienced work comp attorney to learn more about your legal rights and options.