You love working in South Carolina, but there are certainly hazards to your job. You work as a roofer, so you always have to be cautious about falls. You have to secure your tools and make sure they don’t fall down and hit people passing by or other workers down below. You have to understand scaffolding and how to use your tools safely.
Unfortunately, even with your best efforts, roofing is always going to be a dangerous job. In fact, roofers have a fatality rate of 51.5 people per 100,000 full-time workers. Slips, trips and falls are common, and there are around 2,060 nonfatal injuries that take place annually.
It’s no secret that falls are a threat to roofers, because you do have to be up one or more stories above the ground to repair roofing. Some roofing may be badly damaged and unstable, and that’s also something you have to consider. Even with quality training, you’re still potentially at risk of being involved in an accident.
On top of that, this is a highly physical field. You need to carry heavy items up and down ladders, may need to bend and climb regularly and could have to work in hazardous weather conditions.
What do you need to do if you’re hurt on the job?
If you’re working for an employer and are hurt on the job, you may be able to seek workers’ compensation to cover your injuries. You can seek benefits such as the replacement of a portion of your lost wages, coverage for medical care and vocational rehabilitation.
Our website has more on working in a dangerous industry like this one and what you can do if you’re involved in an accident.