This year is the 30th anniversary of National Safety Month. Established by the National Safety Council, the event is held each June to promote safe practices and prevent injuries on the job, at home, and on the road.
Long before the Bureau of Labor Statistics analyzed and published comprehensive, national data on workplace fatalities in the U.S., the National Safety Council published “injury summaries.” Its first, printed in 1921, estimated 75,500 fatal accidents and a death rate of 71.9 per 100,000 population. This first statistical summary, An Analysis of Public Accidents, was created with the help of volunteers who collected data from 36 cities, life insurance companies, plus additional sources.
Today, the National Safety Council regularly uses Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data to monitor workplace trends and advocate for better safety measures.
According to the latest available injury data from the BLS:
• 5,070 workers died from on-the-job injuries in the U.S. in 2024, a 4.0-percent drop from the 5,283 recorded in 2023.
• Construction had the most private industry workplace deaths at 1,034 in 2024, down 3.8 percent from 1,075 in the prior year.
• Transportation incidents were the deadliest event category in 2024, claiming 1,937 lives.
• Falls, slips, and trips were the second highest at 844 deaths, down from 885 in 2023.
• Contact incidents accounted for 756 fatalities.
• Violent acts—including homicides (470) and suicides (263)—resulted in a total of 733 deaths.
• The steepest decline came in the exposure to harmful substances or environments category which fell 16.2 percent from 820 to 687 deaths. This decline was driven by a decrease in fatal drug and alcohol overdoses, which were down from 512 in 2023 to 410 in 2024.
This National Safety Month, as well as every day, our group puts the safety of our people first with our comprehensive, industry-recognized Working. Safe. program. With buy-in from each level of our organization, working safely is what we do – and how we do it. Happy National Safety Month!