Working and Talking—The wrong number for mobile phones

More than 100 million U.S. and Canadian people use mobile phones. For both professional and personal use, those phones are a valuable resource—if they are NOT used while you’re driving or performing dangerous work.

Every year, the number of accidents related with cell phone use increase. And it’s no wonder when you consider that when you use any phone, you have to look at the buttons, which is incompatible with keeping your eyes on the road.

Recently, the family of a teenager killed in an accident collected several million dollars because the other driver was using a cell phone. A number of lawsuits have targeted employers because their employees used the phone to conduct company business while driving, a clear indication that you or any other driver could be sued.

And the jeopardy is not limited to cell phone use while you’re driving. Electrocutions have resulted from on-job mishaps when a cell phone call interrupts concentration while working on energized electric facilities.

There are currently no federal regulations restricting cell phone use in potentially dangerous situations. But a number of U.S. states and localities are considering and a few have implemented such regulations.

YOUR PHONE CALL CAN WAIT. Pay attention to what you are doing while you are driving or performing some other dangerous task.

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Safety Poster

November 2004 IBEW Journal