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Feds to Look Harder at Cell Carriers When Tower Climbers Die
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration will systematically track who subcontractors were working for when accidents occur on cell tower sites.
April 1, 2014
Labor Dept. Warns of "Alarming" Rise in Cell Tower Deaths
Thirteen workers died at communication tower worksites in 2013, more than in the previous two years combined.
February 13, 2014
Built for a Simpler Era, OSHA Struggles When Tower Climbers Die
Fifty men have died in accidents on cell sites since 2003, but federal workplace safety regulators have few tools and little will to impose consequences on the companies that count on their labor.
May 24, 2012
Ask a Former Cell Tower Worker
What are your questions for former cell tower worker Wally Reardon? Ask him on Reddit today or in our live chat.
May 23, 2012
Live Chat Wednesday 1 p.m. ET: Who's Responsible for Cell Tower Deaths?
Join Cell Tower Deaths reporters Ryan Knutson and Liz Day for a live chat featuring former cell tower climber Wally Reardon and guest questioner Ben Drawbaugh from Engadget. You can leave a question now.
May 22, 2012
How Subcontracting Affects Worker Safety
More workers are now employed by a vast network of subcontractors that affects not just industries like tower climbers and construction, but also the health care, logistics, retail and service industries. FRONTLINE interviewed David Weil to understand how the system works now, and why it’s changing the way Americans work today.
May 22, 2012
Methodology: How We Calculated the Tower Industry Death Rate
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics does not have a standard code for tower climbing and, thus, does not compile uniform data on tower workers' fatality rates. We used OSHA’s methodology to calculate deaths per 100,000 workers for the tower industry for each year from 2003 to 2010.
May 22, 2012
Jordan Barab: Why OSHA Can't Cite Cell Carriers for Worker Safety Violations
OSHA's legal authorities depend on who employs on-site workers, explains Jordan Barab, the agency's second in command.
May 22, 2012
In Race For Better Cell Service, Men Who Climb Towers Pay With Their Lives
Corporate giants have outsourced the dangerous work of building and maintaining communications towers to tiny subcontracting companies. Over the last nine years, nearly 100 workers have died, 50 of them on cell sites.
May 22, 2012
Home Video DVDs of Cell Tower Deaths are available from ShopPBS.
Educational DVDs of Cell Tower Deaths are available from ShopPBS for Teachers.