Washing windows in the sky a 'relatively' safe job

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You’re more likely to die working an oil rig than stepping off the roof of a 70-storey highrise to wash windows.

Hanging by a rope to clean glass so those on upper floors have their pristine view may seem to people on the ground as the work of a daredevil or madman.

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But what was once one of the most life-threatening jobs in the world doesn’t even make the top 100 list of most dangerous jobs today.

“It’s relatively a safe occupation, but yes, some people think it’s crazy to do,” said Stefan Bright, safety director with the International Window Cleaners Association.

“You do have to have a certain amount of whatever to go over a building.”

Most dangerous jobs statistics show working in the fishing industry on the high seas or the logging and forestry field with chainsaws will get you killed easier than propelling off a building with a squeegee.

The construction workers who build the skyscrapers are also more likely to suffer a fatality than those suspended up a building doing a window wash.

Mining and quarry work can also be more of a death trap compared to cleaning in the sky.

In fact, 8% of heart attacks can be attributed to being stuck in traffic.

Bright says Ontario was one of the pioneers bringing in safety regulations — such as certified roof anchors instead of just hooking on to a building somewhere — that have kept window washers alive since the mid 1990s.

kconnoer@postmedia.com