Pittsburgh Product Liability Law Firm Highlights Worker Injury Risks as Pennsylvania Workplace Fatalities Rise

New BLS data shows Pennsylvania construction deaths surged 60 percent in 2024

PITTSBURGH, PA, UNITED STATES, August 24, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Injury Law Partners, a personal injury law firm with offices in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, is drawing attention to newly released federal workplace safety data showing a significant increase in fatal work injuries across Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, released March 19, 2026, fatal work injuries in Pennsylvania totaled 185 in 2024, a 9.5 percent increase from 169 fatalities recorded in 2023 and the highest total reported for the state in at least seven years.

The BLS data identifies the construction sector as the industry with the steepest single-year increase, recording 48 fatal workplace injuries in Pennsylvania in 2024, up from 30 the previous year, a 60 percent increase. Falls, slips, and trips accounted for 26 percent of all fatal work injuries statewide, with 42 of the 48 fatal falls involving a fall to a lower level.

Beyond fatalities, the scale of nonfatal workplace injuries in Pennsylvania remains substantial. A separate BLS report covering 2023 found that private industry employers reported 115,200 nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in Pennsylvania, at a rate of 2.6 cases per 100 full-time equivalent workers, above the national rate of 2.4.

Injury Law Partners founding Partner Ben Baer noted that while many workplace injuries result from unsafe workplace conditions, many cases he sees involve defective tools, machinery, and equipment, and the conduct of other contractors, which are all factors that give injured workers legal options beyond the workers' compensation system.

"The data reflects a troubling trend for Pennsylvania workers," Baer said. "What many injured workers and their families don't realize is that when a defective product, a machine without proper guarding, a tool with a failed safety mechanism, or a piece of construction equipment that malfunctions contributes to an injury, the injured worker may have a civil claim against the product's manufacturer or distributor that is entirely separate from any workers' compensation claim. That distinction matters because workers' compensation does fully compensate victims of workplace injury. It does not award damages for pain and suffering or loss of enjoyment of life pleasures. Those are damages we pursue on behalf of our client in civil product liability claims."

The firm noted that Pennsylvania applies a strict liability standard to defective product cases, meaning an injured worker is not required to prove that a manufacturer was careless, only that the product was defective and caused the injury. Baer believes this represents a meaningful advantage in litigation for injured Pennsylvania workers whose injuries were caused by defective equipment.

Injury Law Partners represents clients injured by defective products across a range of industries, including manufacturing, construction, warehousing, utilities, and healthcare. The firm has offices in Pittsburgh at 954 Greentree Road, Suite 2000, and in Philadelphia at 1628 John F. Kennedy Boulevard, Suite 1302. The firm works exclusively on a contingency fee basis, meaning clients pay no legal fees unless compensation is recovered on their behalf.

More information about product liability claims in Pittsburgh is available at: injurylawpartners.com/locations/pa/pittsburgh/product-liability-lawyer/

About Injury Law Partners
Injury Law Partners is a personal injury law firm representing catastrophically injured individuals in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and nationally. The firm's attorneys have nearly 30 years of combined experience handling complex personal injury cases, including product liability, construction accidents, workplace injuries, and amputation cases. The firm has recovered more than $450 million on behalf of injured clients. Injury Law Partners offers free consultations and handles all cases on a contingency fee basis.

Injury Law Partners
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