NC investigates Raleigh firm after worker hospitalized following Wolfspeed accident
Update: On Monday, July 24, the N.C. Department of Labor confirmed the employee injured in last week’s accident has died.
The N.C. Department of Labor opened an investigation into a Raleigh construction firm Tuesday, the day after an employee was injured while working as a contractor at the headquarters of prominent Triangle semiconductor producer Wolfspeed.
According to department spokesperson Erin Wilson, the workplace accident has been categorized as a hospitalization, which the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration defines as “the formal admission to the inpatient service of a hospital or clinic for care or treatment.”
The name of the employee, and their health status, has not yet been made public.
Wolfspeed is not included in the state inspection, Wilson said.
According to the labor department, the injured worker was employed by Southern Industrial Constructors Inc., a Raleigh company that proclaims to be “a leading provider of turnkey industrial construction and plant maintenance services” in the Southeast.
“At this time, details are not available,” a Southern Industrial Constructors representative told The News & Observer, citing the ongoing investigation.
The state will release more details about the incident following its investigation, which typically takes months to conclude.
A dangerous industry
Construction consistently ranks among the most dangerous, and deadly, industries in the United States. According to labor department data, the sector has had the most workplace fatalities in North Carolina during the fiscal years of 2021, 2022 and so far in 2023 — accounting for 56 of the state’s 197 workplace deaths during this period.
According to the OSHA incident database, there is currently an open investigation into Southern Industrial for an April 14 incident outside Columbia, South Carolina that has been categorized as a fatality/catastrophe.
In 2012, Southern Industrial was acquired by EMCOR Group, a publicly-traded construction company based in Connecticut.
This story was originally published July 18, 2023 at 4:27 PM.
