Illinois’ own National Safety Council (“NSC”), recognized as “America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate,” is currently sponsoring its 30th annual National Safety Month throughout June 2026. Today, it is a campaign involving not only safety non-profits and workers and their advocates after a severe work injury, but employers and safety professionals in different industries, all working together to try and keep people safe from being hurt or killed in a preventable accident.
As NSC CEO Lorraine Martin explains,
“For three decades, National Safety Month has united businesses, advocates, agencies, nonprofits and individuals around the shared goal of making workplaces, roadways and communities safer. The National Safety Council is proud to have spearheaded this effort for the past 30 years, and we look forward to continuing the vital work of raising awareness, providing resources, and spreading the value of safety, health and wellbeing for all.”
Each week during June 2026 has a different theme. For industrial workers and their loved ones, perhaps the most important focus is the last week of the month (June 21-30), when the spotlight falls on “preventing slips, trips, and falls.”
Fatal Falls: One of the Leading Causes of Death on the Job
The NSC confirms conclusions reached by other safety data compiled by places like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: more people die from bodily injuries sustained in a fall than in any other type of “unintentional injury-related” incident other than poisoning (think drug overdose). The NSC warns that 24% of all preventable injury-related deaths in the U.S. are the result of a fall.
Moreover, when considering work accidents, falls are clearly a great risk (if not the main reason) for workers dying on the job. The NSC data shows that in 2024, 17% of all workplace deaths involved a fall injury. For construction workers, their risk of death in a fall is 700% higher than any other industrial worker when the fall is from a height.
For more, read: Deadly Construction Accidents: Falls Remain a Leading Cause of Death for Construction Workers.
Protection Against Workplace Fall Accidents: OSHA Regulations
Of course, the danger of suffering catastrophic harm or dying in a fall on the job is no mystery, either to the workforce or to those with possession, custody, and control of aspects of the worksite. Alongside company policies and industrial standards are legal mandates enacted to protect workers from a preventable fall accident.
Overseen by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) alongside the State Plans here in Illinois and Indiana, regulations exist that mandate certain protections exist on a local worksite. The regulations are not the same for every industry, of course. There is no “one size fits all” here.
For construction workers, fall accident safety is found in 29 CFR §1926.501. These regulations consider the particular circumstances of the construction industry, where construction workers may find themselves working at least six feet off the ground on a daily basis. Here, the regulations state that there must be worker safety specific to that situation, involving things like guardrails; safety nets; and personal fall systems.
For other industries (think manufacturing and warehousing), 29 CFR §1910.28 applies. This is the general industry fall safety regulation, requiring workers to be providing things like safety nets, personal protective equipment that includes fall protection systems, and guardrails whenever they are asked to perform a task at least four feet above a lower level.
Also read: Fighting Fatal Falls on the Job: OSHA’s First National Emphasis Program.
Common Worker Safety Against Workplace Fall Accidents in Illinois and Indiana
Industrial worksites employ lots of people here in our part of the country. There are all sorts of ongoing construction projects here, from huge and high construction projects in Chicagoland to the warehouse and factory floors throughout Illinois and Indiana, not to mention the agri-business of the Hoosier State (think those tall tractors, silos, mills, and the like).
While the safety regulations are clearly honed to protect against specific hazards within a worksite, some basic fall protections should be easily identified across all kinds of jobsites here. No matter the industrial workplace here in Illinois or Indiana, workers should be able to point to practical protections in place that help to protect them from being seriously hurt or killed in a fall.
Their absence is a tremendous red flag to workers that they are in danger of a severe work accident with life-altering consequences.
These include:
Structures and Systems
Things like guardrails should be in place to protect against falls from open edges, from a construction site to the edge of a mezzanine in a factory. Systems for the worker should be provided with proper fit and in good working order that include things like harnesses, anchors, and lanyards (“fall arrest systems”). See, 29 CFR §1926.502; 29 CFR §1910.28; and 29 CFR §1910.29.
Worksite Housekeeping
The work environment is within the control of one or more parties and it is imperative that reasonable and prudent housekeeping tasks be undertaken as often as necessary. Sometimes, this may be a continual job where things like stairs, scaffolds, decks, piers, walkways, inclines, docks, platforms, and other work areas where workers may step are kept clean from fall dangers like debris, loose cords, spills, etc.
For more, read: Workplace Housekeeping and Serious Accidents on the Job: Duty of Care.
The Invitation of National Safety Month: Are Workers at Risk of a Fatal Fall Accident on the Job?
This month, employers and others with possession, custody, or control of aspects of our industrial worksites here in Illinois and Indiana are invited to stop and consider the safety of their particular worksites and how much risk exists for a work fall accident. Workers are also wise to be alert for the risks that may exist on their job site.
How much danger are you, your co-workers, or your loved ones facing each day because basic fall safety protections are not being provided on your worksite? Workers have rights. There are rights to complain in the face of worksite hazards. In some situations, there may even be a right to stop work until things are corrected and made safe.
For more, read Worker’s Right to Stop Dangerous Work Operations in Indiana and Illinois; and Hurt on the Job Site: Workers Afraid to Make a Safety Complaint.
The NSC is offering employers and others all sorts of help in addressing fall safety. These are free resources, including things like:
- Fact Sheets
- 5-Minute Safety Talks
- Curated Videos, Articles and Research
- Safe At Work Pledge
- Case Studies & Videos
- Webinars.
Falls kill people. A worker can suffer fatal bodily injuries in a fall from less than six feet. That’s not very high up, to fall to your death, but it happens. Read, “At What Height Do Falls Become Deadly?” written by Karoly Ban Matei and published by Safeopedia on April 25, 2026. Bringing this national campaign focus upon the need for fall protections in our industrial worksites is important and welcomed.
For more on fatal falls, read:
- Fatal Falls in Construction Caused by Employers Failing to Plan for Worker Safety
- Fatal Falls on the Job and the Employers Failure to Protect Worker From Fall Risk
- Construction Worker Deaths: Almost Half of All Construction Fatalities Caused by Falls
- Serious or Fatal Slip and Fall Injuries: The Employer’s Duty of Care.
A fall accident can happen within seconds with devastating results. Industrial worksites in Indiana and Illinois are particularly hazardous for falls. Please be careful out there!
