In 2004, two years before Facebook became accessible to the general public and Yahoo! Groups were getting their internet legs, there was the now-defunct Tower-Pro group. It boasted 2,200 members at its peak, and was one of the few vehicles offering news and only when a member posted a link. At that time, former journalist and veteran contractor in the …
NATE highlights 192 companies that are participating in the STAR Initiative and NATE-OSHA-FCC Partnership
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association today announced the member companies who have been formally approved to participate in the STAR Initiative program and the NATE-OSHA-FCC Partnership program for the 2023-2024 year. NATE has proudly accepted 192 participating companies in this year’s STAR Initiative program and 157 participating companies in this year’s NATE-OSHA-FCC Partnership. The STAR Initiative will be entering …
Driver is electrocuted while unloading aerial lift for California cell site project
According to authorities, a 37-year-old Fresno, CA, equipment rental delivery driver was electrocuted Wednesday while offloading an aerial lift in Parlier, CA, that would be utilized by a tower crew performing services on a nearby cell tower. Officials say that Jaun Abriz was employed by H&E Equipment Services and struck an electrical wire at about 9:00 a.m. Those responding to …
OSHA, media and the CWA routinely and inaccurately portray the wireless industry as the ‘most dangerous’
Commentary — In 2006, after exhaustive research, Wireless Estimator identified cell tower climbers had the most dangerous job in America, exposing a death rate per 100,000 workers of 115.2 based upon approximately 8,700 workers within the industry. The data was obtained, in part, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) lagging 2004 data, based upon ten fatalities, later revised to …
A secured cable grip failure appears to have caused the death of a Texas tower technician
After a 32-year-old tower technician passed away on December 15, 2022, in Weatherford, TX, while engaged in an installation project for Verizon, the limited information provided by the Parker County Sheriff’s Office and the technician’s employer, Neticom of Arlington, TX, appeared to indicate that the Fort Worth technician was killed after a hybrid cable came loose while it was being …
Alabama tower collapse ends a tower tech’s life, leaving behind his wife and five children
A 36-year-old tower technician and father of five who worked for the Alabama Forestry Commission (AFC) died Wednesday afternoon in a “tragic accident,” the agency said yesterday. Communications technician Brett Savage with the AFC and a resident of Deatsville, in Elmore County, was killed instantly when the communications tower he was helping a crew remove collapsed in Washington County, the …
Tower tech is seriously injured after falling from an unknown height inside a Florida water tower
The condition of 26-year-old tower technician Brandon O’Neil of Orlando, FL is unknown after he fell from an unknown height inside a water tower in Palm Coast, FL, on Tuesday evening and suffered serious injuries. A Flagler County press release said that the technician “was atop the tower when he fell approximately 120 feet,” which is being repeated in media …
Windy City Tower Techs resolves OSHA fatality investigation with zero citations relating to accident
Windy City Tower Techs, LLC (“Windy City”) suffered an unfortunate fatality incident on September 3, 2021 at a monopine telecommunications tower in Olympia Fields, Illinois. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) conducted a comprehensive investigation into the incident. Importantly, OSHA found no violations relating to the fatal accident. During its inspection, OSHA learned that the employee was not …
Close to 100 contracting companies join the NATE-OSHA-FCC Strategic Partnership
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association congratulates the inaugural year participating companies in the NATE-OSHA-FCC Strategic Partnership for 2021-2022. The NATE-OSHA-FCC Partnership provides participants the opportunity to work cooperatively with OSHA, FCC and other contractors, to identify the most serious workplace hazards, develop workplace-appropriate safety and health management systems, share resources, and find effective ways to reduce work injuries, illness, …
Proposed OSHA heat stress rule should be looked at from a tower climber’s elevation: NATE
OSHA states that it is aware that 70% of heat-related deaths and serious illnesses occur within the first few days of work, and upwards of 50% occur on the first day of work for workers who have not been acclimatized to hazardous heat, and recommends a reduced schedule of strenuous work in outdoor or indoor settings. The agency believes that …
Appeals court provides a holiday present to contractors, telling OSHA to stand down on its COVID mandate
OSHA is temporarily suspending enforcement of the Biden administration’s private sector COVID-19 vaccine mandate that would have had companies with over 100 employees comply with the new vaccine mandate rule, although tower crews could be exempt. Yesterday’s announcement comes after the Fifth Circuit U.S. Courts of Appeals in New Orleans twice ordered implementation of the mandate halted, citing “grave” constitutional …
Tower crews in companies with over 100 employees could be exempt in OSHA’s new vaccine mandate rule
Update: November 6, 2021 – A federal appeals court in Louisiana has blocked President Biden’s latest COVID-19 vaccination mandate, giving the government until Monday afternoon to submit a response. An emergency stay, issued Saturday from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, prevents the White House from requiring all full and part-time workers at private-sector companies with …
An unvaccinated worker’s OSHA fine will be $13,653, but an average fatality non-compliance fine is only $7,748
Newly proposed rules, which President Biden announced last Thursday, will require wireless industry companies with more than 100 workers to require vaccinations of all employees against the coronavirus or face weekly testing. Although the majority of businesses fall far short of more than 100 employees, there are many key companies that meet that plateau such as the major tower owners, …
Additional voluntary safety forms in next ESL version will pave the way for a safer wireless workforce
For the past 11 years, the majority of the wireless construction industry has been keeping their jobsites safe and OSHA compliant with the nation’s leading Jobsite Hazard Assessment (JHA) forms that are automatically populated with emergency services information such as the nearest hospital, fire department, and law enforcement agency. The service is available at no charge and takes just minutes …
Supervising a Maryland build? Watch out for a prowling former OSHA chief
If you’re performing an upgrade or installing 5G small cells in Takoma Park, MD, especially near Westmoreland Ave., double check your JHA to ensure that all of your safety measures are spot on, or you could be spotted by former Deputy Assistant Secretary of OSHA Jordan Barab who is on the prowl in his neighborhood for worksite violations. This morning, …
Kathy Stieler’s new role at NATE will help the industry navigate safety, health and compliance issues
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association has announced the hiring of Kathy Stieler as Director of Safety, Health & Compliance, a new staff position established by the Association. Stieler officially began her duties with NATE this morning. Stieler, a long-time industry subject matter expert and safety professional, joins NATE after serving as Director, ERI Installations and Safety since 2012. During …
Welder falls 95-feet and dies while working on a U.S. Cellular retrofit project in Kansas
A 45-year-old welder fell to his death while working on a tower modification in Le Roy, Kansas on Sunday, according to individuals knowledgeable of the accident. A spokesperson of Blackhawk Tower Communications of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin confirmed that Shane Jenson of Orfordville, Wisconsin was welding a modification on a U.S. Cellular site at about the 95-foot level when his safety …
Lack of training kills a high school day laborer climber and his employer claims it was his own fault
Lakaram Karanjeet was working part-time for Rise & Rise Wireless, Inc. while he was in high school. He died on June 28, 2019 when he fell from this New Jersey 150-foot monopole. An investigation by Wireless Estimator into a lawsuit brought against multiple defendants exposes a wireless construction contractor that had no safety programs in place, few owned assets and …
Walsh’s confirmation as Secretary of Labor is a big win for unions
In a 68 to 29 vote, the U.S. Senate today confirmed Boston Mayor Marty Walsh as the new Secretary of Labor in the Biden administration. As Secretary, Walsh, 53, will also have the power to oversee workplace safety, enforce hourly wages and overtime, recommend new legislation and guide labor statistics collection. Walsh is an advocate of immigrants. In Massachusetts, he …
Plaintiffs settle for $3.2 million in 2018 Missouri tower collapse that killed company owner
Missouri State University and other defendants have reached a $3.2 million settlement in a 2018 deadly television tower collapse in Fordland, Missouri. The Springfield News-Leader reports the university’s attorney, Rachael Dockery, notified the school’s governing board of a “global settlement” in all the lawsuits filed about the incident. According to court documents, on March 10, 2021, a letter was presented …
