Construction collapses after the decision on Boije: “Scandal”

Boije Forsén had not seen the instructions for the stairs he was going to install – which crushed him to death.

Despite this and more safety deficiencies, no charges are brought against the employer NCC.

– More obvious flaws cannot be found, yet nothing is done, says Johan Lindholm, union chairman at Byggnads.

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Aftonbladet has told about Boije Forsén, 62, who died at NCC’s construction site in Linköping on February 24, 2022. The construction worker has previously reviewed the case.

Boije, who had worked as a concrete worker all his professional life, was to install a 2.7 ton staircase in a future apartment building. But the stairs flipped around and smashed him against the wall. Boije died of his injuries in hospital. He left behind a wife and two children.

Critical: “Pure coincidence”

Bengt Svensson at the National Unit for the Environment and Work Environment dropped the preliminary investigation against the employer NCC later that year.

The chamber prosecutor referred, among other things, to the fact that a similar staircase had been installed on the floor below, “without any known incidents having occurred.” And also that Boije was seasoned and experienced.

Mattias af Malmborg, federal lawyer at LO-TCO legal protection, recently tried to have the decision reconsidered. He believes that it was just a “pure coincidence” that there was no accident with the previously installed stairs.

– It could just as well have happened then, but it didn’t happen by pure chance. You can’t pull any gears on that.

The public prosecutor could not assess the risk assessment and work preparation that had been done – because it was not recorded in writing.

– The employer must ensure that the routines are in place. When you are talking about such dangerous things as an unstable concrete staircase weighing almost three tons – then it should be difficult to make a mistake. And it wasn’t here, says Mattias af Malmborg.

“Then I get to shake bars”

Through a High Court ruling from 2007, the proof requirement was somewhat relaxed in criminal cases regarding workplace accidents. If an accident “with a high degree of probability” could have been avoided, that can be enough to get an employer convicted of work environment violations.

That’s how the federal lawyer thinks it is in Boije’s case. But on March 8, the National Prosecutor announced that they will not review the prosecutor’s decision to close the preliminary investigation. There is thus nothing more to be done legally.

If personal responsibility was demanded more often, perhaps the gloomy trend of fatal accidents could reverse, says Mattias af Malmborg.

– If a manager understands that “well, if I don’t make sure this works, then it’s my head that rolls. Then I get to shake bars.” That thought is so unpleasant that people would seriously tighten up. It has started to happen, but it needs to happen much more often. Therefore, I hope that the judiciary will be a little more inclined to bring charges, says Mattias af Malmborg.

Aftonbladet has sought the prosecutor Bengt Svensson, but his department says he has retired.

Bygnads has not given up on the case

The Construction trade union considers it a scandal that charges have not been brought in Boije Forsén’s case.

– It is simply unacceptable. Responsibility must be demanded in a situation like this, says Johan Lindblom, union chairman for Byggnads.

Boije Forsén and his colleague Göran Carlsson had not seen the instructions for the concrete stairs they were to assemble.

– A prerequisite for being able to perform good work under good conditions is that you prepare work and assess risks. In this case, you didn’t even have to read assembly instructions or prepare even once.

As it stands, no one from NCC will be held accountable in a trial.

– We are, of course, looking at this. And as soon as we see an opportunity for a way forward, we will take it, says Johan Lindholm at Byggnads.

Five died when the lift collapsed

Boije Forsén is unfortunately not the only one who has died on the job recently. In 2023, 63 people died in the service, of which 17 people worked in the construction industry.

The most described accident happened in Sundbyberg, where five people died in connection with a construction lift collapsing. Four missing screw connections caused the collapse, according to the Norwegian Accident Commission.

– That people die in our workplaces to this terrible extent, it is terrible – but no one is held accountable. It is completely unacceptable. We will build housing and do a lot going forward, this is a sector that will need all the labor it can get. If those who do not behave themselves are not held accountable for these types of events, young girls and boys will not apply here. The judiciary has an enormous responsibility to put pressure and make demands, says Johan Lindholm.

NCC: Risk assessment has been carried out

NCC chooses to express itself in writing. The company calls the accident a tragedy and says its thoughts are with the victim’s family and colleagues.

Why didn’t Boije and Göran see the instructions for the stairs? How is a construction worker supposed to be able to perform the work correctly and safely without having seen it?

“We do not share the description provided by the Swedish Work Environment Authority. As emerged after the accident, two work preparations had been carried out before the installation, in which the employees participated who then also carried out the work. According to information, the way in which the assembly was carried out was well known by the professionals and they had also worked accordingly in the previous stair assemblies. Even the prosecutor in the case shares NCC’s view of how the preparation went,” writes press manager Amelie Winberg after speaking with NCC’s work environment manager.

You refer to an oral risk assessment and work preparation that must have been carried out. What did it look like?

“During a work preparation, the site management together with employees must go through which steps must be done, and how they must be done in a safe manner. The work preparation can be written or oral and must be based on both possible instructions and on the team’s previous shared experiences. Work preparation has been carried out in connection with the work”.

In 2014, there was also a fatal accident at NCC in Linköping, when a colleague of Boije was hit by a casting mold and died. Boije Forsén was there that day, and was very touched by the incident.

The widow’s criticism of the NCC: “Nonchalant”

The NCC has also done an internal investigation into Boije’s case, in a few pages. The widow Lotta Forsén does not think that it goes to the bottom of the fact that the accident could happen, and is critical of NCC’s actions.

– There was a senior manager from NCC, who I sat here and talked to. Then I was very critical of NCC’s internal investigation, and wrote down questions. He promised he would look into it and get back to you. And he never returned.

– So that’s probably my experience with NCC. In the acute stage, you get condolences and flowers, then an internal investigation that is under all criticism, and then silence. It feels nonchalant, it’s not dignified, says Lotta Forsén.

FACTS Full response from NCC

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