CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Questions remain after three men died when scaffolding collapsed on Jan. 2 at a construction site in Dilworth, just outside of Uptown Charlotte.
Construction work presents some of the most hazardous conditions of any industry, mostly impacting the Latino community.
In 2020, the death rate for Hispanic construction workers in the U.S. was 41.6% higher than the rate for non-Hispanic workers, according to a report from the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR).
In North Carolina, the trends are similar.
Morga Richey is the leading epidemiologist researcher for a study published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine. The study found that the number of workplace deaths was highest among Latinos in North Carolina.
Over the study period, at least 260 Latinos died of workplace injuries.
“Who gets called up on the windy roof or to get under the semi-truck when things are a little bit shaky, often it's people who can’t say no,” Richey said.
An unsafe worksite with deadly results brings a new call for change, after three men fell to their deaths last week.
“Rarely do they get this level of news coverage," Richey said. "It happens silently on a roof on a construction site, but since it was downtown, multiple people, we have eyes on it."
Meanwhile, some organizations are working on workplace training ahead of time.
Goodwill has a program that provides free training in trade careers at no cost.
The organization is trying to help tackle the labor shortage in the construction industry.
Marvin Kelley, Director of Construction and Trade Training for Goodwill, said creating workplace habits from the beginning are more likely to continue with the employer.
“Safety is critical for us, before you even start your first class you have go through an OSHA 10—which is Occupational Safety and Health Administration for 10 hours and what that does is it covers a lot of the critical safety components of being on a worksite," Kelley said.
Experts said the simple truth is no one, regardless of race, should die at work.
As of now, OSHA is still investigating the fatal incident that occurred in in Charlotte.