SafeDE News

If you run a construction business in Delaware, here is a number worth knowing: fall protection alone generated nearly $50 million in OSHA penalties in FY 2024 (OSHA, FY2024). That is one violation category, one year. Construction accounts for 5 of OSHA's 10 most-cited standards every single year, and the list has barely changed in over a decade.

Most workplace injuries don't happen because an employer was negligent. They happen because safety was treated as a procedure instead of a culture, a checklist to complete rather than a mindset shared by everyone on the team.

Every year, OSHA publishes a list of the industries where workers are most likely to get seriously hurt. For 2026, some of the industries at the top may surprise you.

Here are the 10 most hazardous industries for FY 2026, what drives the risk in each one, and what Delaware employers can do about it.

One worker dies in a construction accident every single day in the United States. In 2024, construction and extraction workers accounted for 1,032 of the 5,070 total fatal work injuries recorded. That is roughly 1 in 5 worker deaths, despite representing only about 5% of the workforce (BLS, 2024).

Winter has a way of putting safety on the back burner. Equipment sits idle. Seasonal workers haven't started yet. Things feel manageable. Then April hits. Suddenly, your crew is back outside, your equipment is running again, and your busiest months are right in front of you.

Everyday tasks like using the stairs, walking through the warehouse, or stepping onto a loading dock shouldn’t put workers at risk. Yet trips, slips, and falls are consistently one of the leading causes of workplace injuries.