Our group works continuously to improve safety performance–evaluating and refining our processes daily–with a zero injury and illness goal through our safety program, “Working. Safe.”
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has released its 2017 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries Summary.
According to the summary, a total of 5,147 fatal work injuries occurred in 2017, a rate of 3.5 per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers. For comparison, the 2016 fatal injury rate was 3.6 per 100,000 workers with 5,190 fatal work injuries reported that year.
Some key findings:
- Fatal falls were at their highest level in the 26-year history of the census, accounting for 887 worker deaths, or 17 percent.
- Transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal event with 2,077, or 40 percent.
- The transportation and material moving group and the construction and extraction occupational group accounted for 47 percent of worker deaths.
- For the fifth consecutive year, unintentional workplace overdose deaths have increased by at least 25 percent. In 2017, there were 272 deaths up from 217 in 2016.
- Fifteen percent of the fatally-injured workers were age 65 years or over. By comparison that figure was 8 percent in 1992 (the first year for the census).
- Crane-related workplace fatalities fell to their lowest recorded level with 33 deaths in 2017.