Concrete and Masonry Construction Injuries: 30+ Statistics Updated Through 2025

Concrete and masonry construction encompasses some of the most physically demanding and hazardous work in the US construction industry. Workers in poured concrete foundation contracting, masonry, structural steel and precast concrete, and related trades face injury and fatality rates consistently above the all-construction average. BLS data for 2023 – the most recently available full-year data as of 2025 – shows injury rates ranging from 2.7 to 3.6 per 100 workers across concrete and masonry subsectors, compared to 2.3 per 100 for all construction.

The fatality picture is dominated by OSHA’s Fatal Four: falls, struck by object, electrocution, and caught-in/between. Falls alone account for 38-39% of all construction fatalities annually, and concrete and masonry work accounts for approximately 20% of the sector’s total death count. Silica dust exposure – a long-latency health hazard from cutting, grinding, and drilling concrete and masonry – adds a significant chronic disease burden that does not appear in acute injury statistics.

Below we have compiled 30+ statistics and data points on concrete and masonry construction injuries, covering fatality data, nonfatal injury rates by subsector, the Fatal Four in construction, silica dust exposure and disease burden, musculoskeletal injury drivers, OSHA compliance data, and what distinguishes lower-injury concrete and masonry operations in 2025.

• Structural Steel and Precast Concrete contractors recorded the highest nonfatal injury rate in the concrete and masonry group at 3.6 per 100 FTE workers – 57% above the all-construction average of 2.3. This subsector involves the highest combination of fall exposure, heavy lifting, and struck-by hazards. (BLS SOII 2023)
• Foundation, Structure, and Building Exterior Contractors recorded 3.2 per 100 workers – 39% above the all-construction average. This grouping includes the full range of concrete forming, pouring, and finishing operations where overexertion and fall injuries are most prevalent. (BLS SOII 2023)
• Poured Concrete Foundation Contractors (2.8) and Masonry Contractors (2.7) both record injury rates above the all-construction average, reflecting the cumulative physical demands of block laying, mortar work, and concrete placement on musculoskeletal injury rates. (BLS SOII 2023)
• The most common injury types across concrete and masonry subsectors are sprains and strains (overexertion from lifting heavy materials), fractures (falls from elevation), lacerations (cutting tools and concrete edges), and struck-by injuries (falling objects, equipment contact). (BLS SOII; OSHA Construction Data)
• Days away from work (DAFW) cases – the most serious nonfatal injuries – are particularly elevated in concrete and masonry, reflecting the severity of fall and overexertion injuries in these trades. The median days away from work for construction injuries is 7 days, but musculoskeletal and fall injuries frequently exceed 30 days. (BLS SOII 2023)

• OSHA’s Fatal Four – falls, struck-by, electrocution, and caught-in/between – account for approximately 60% of all construction fatalities. Eliminating these four hazard categories would save approximately 600 construction workers’ lives annually. (OSHA Construction Fatal Four)
• Fall protection violations under 29 CFR 1926.502 are consistently the most-cited OSHA standard in construction, appearing as the single top citation year after year. In concrete and masonry operations, unprotected scaffold platforms, unguarded form edges, and inadequate personal fall arrest system use are the most common specific deficiencies. (OSHA Annual Top 10 Citations)
• Scaffolding violations under 29 CFR 1926.451 and 1926.452 rank among the top-five most cited construction standards annually. Concrete masonry wall construction, tuck-pointing, and brick laying are the primary scaffolding-intensive operations in the masonry sector. (OSHA)
• Concrete pump booms – which can extend to 170 feet or more – present a specific electrocution risk when operated near overhead power lines. The minimum safe clearance distance under OSHA 1926.1408 is 20 feet for lines up to 350 kV, a requirement frequently violated on urban construction sites with congested overhead utility corridors. (29 CFR 1926.1408)

• OSHA estimates that approximately 2.3 million US workers are exposed to respirable crystalline silica at work, with construction workers – particularly concrete and masonry trades – accounting for the largest share of the exposed population. (OSHA Silica Standard Preamble)
• OSHA’s construction silica standard under 29 CFR 1926.1153, which took effect in 2017, sets a permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 50 micrograms per cubic metre as an 8-hour TWA. For the 18 most common silica-generating tasks in construction, OSHA publishes Table 1 specifying the engineering controls and respiratory protection required for each task. (29 CFR 1926.1153)
• Silicosis – progressive and irreversible fibrosis of the lung from silica dust inhalation – has no cure. OSHA estimates that the silica standard will prevent approximately 600 deaths per year and 900 new cases of silicosis annually once fully implemented, reflecting the scale of historical exposure in the construction sector. (OSHA Silica Rule Impact Analysis)
• Angle grinding on masonry without engineering controls generates silica dust concentrations that can exceed the OSHA PEL by 100 times or more. A worker performing this task for even a fraction of a shift can accumulate silica exposure equivalent to a full shift at compliant conditions in hours. (OSHA Silica Sampling Data)
• Dry cutting concrete block without engineering controls is prohibited under Table 1 – any dry sawing of masonry requires either integrated water delivery systems or vacuum exhaust systems capturing dust at the point of generation. Dry cutting without controls is one of the most common silica violations cited in construction OSHA inspections. (29 CFR 1926.1153 Table 1; OSHA Enforcement Data)
• OSHA’s silica standard also requires medical surveillance for construction workers exposed at or above the action level of 25 micrograms per cubic metre for 30 or more days per year – a requirement that many small concrete and masonry contractors have not yet fully implemented. (29 CFR 1926.1153(h))

• Wet cement is caustic – it has a pH of approximately 12-13 – and can cause severe chemical burns with prolonged skin contact. Burns from wet cement are typically delayed in onset because the initial contact may not be painful, leading workers to remain in contact until significant tissue damage has occurred. (NIOSH; OSHA Cement Safety Data)
• Occupational contact dermatitis is among the most common occupational skin diseases in construction. Cement dermatitis – caused by both the alkaline and chromate content of cement – affects thousands of construction workers annually and is a significant cause of lost workdays in masonry trades. (NIOSH Skin Exposure Data)
• The hexavalent chromium (Cr VI) content of cement is regulated separately under OSHA’s chromium standard at 29 CFR 1910.1026 (general industry) and construction-specific provisions. Cement producers in the EU have added ferrous sulphate to reduce hexavalent chromium content; US requirements are less prescriptive. (OSHA Chromium Standard)
• Knee pad use during concrete finishing operations reduces the risk of prepatellar bursitis (housemaid’s knee) – a painful inflammatory condition from sustained kneeling on concrete surfaces. Bursitis is among the most common musculoskeletal conditions in concrete finishing workers. (NIOSH; OSHA)
• Hand protection standards for cement work require alkali-resistant gloves rated for pH above 10. Standard nitrile disposable gloves do not provide adequate protection against prolonged wet cement contact. Employers frequently provide inadequate glove types or workers remove gloves for dexterity, creating persistent skin exposure. (OSHA PPE Standard; NIOSH)

• Construction sites with active Safety and Health Management Systems (SHMS) – documented safety programmes with management commitment, hazard identification, worker participation, and incident investigation – consistently show lower injury rates than those without. OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Programme (VPP) sites in construction record injury rates 50% below the industry average. (OSHA VPP Data)
• Concrete and masonry subcontractors working for general contractors with strong safety prequalification requirements – minimum experience modification rates (EMR), documented safety programmes, and safety training verification – are subject to market pressure to improve safety performance. EMR-based prequalification is the most effective industry mechanism for differentiating safety performance among contractors. (ACIG; AGC Safety Data)
• Worker training in the specific hazards of concrete and masonry – fall protection system use, silica dust controls, chemical burn prevention, and scaffold safety – produces measurably lower citation rates and injury frequency when it is task-specific rather than generic. Generic safety orientation does not prepare workers for the specific hazards of concrete pump operation or masonry scaffold erection. (OSHA; CPWR – The Center for Construction Research and Training)
• The use of prefabricated concrete elements and precast panels eliminates the formwork erection and stripping hazards associated with cast-in-place concrete. While precast introduces its own erection hazards (crane lift, bracing requirements), the aggregate injury profile of precast-dominated projects tends to be lower than equivalent cast-in-place projects. (PCI Safety Data; OSHA)