There were 5,250 fatal work injuries recorded in the United States in 2018, a 2 percent increase from the 5,147 in 2017,
the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. (See chart 1 and table 1.) The fatal work injury rate remained
unchanged at 3.5 per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers. (See chart 2.) These data are from the Census of Fatal
Occupational Injuries (CFOI).
Fatal event or exposure:
- Transportation incidents remained the most frequent type of fatal event at 2,080, accounting for 40 percent of all
work-related fatalities. (See chart 3 and table 2.)
- Incidents involving contact with objects and equipment increased 13 percent (from 695 to 786), driven by a 39 percent
increase in workers caught in running equipment or machinery and a 17 percent increase in workers struck by falling
objects or equipment.
- Unintentional overdoses due to nonmedical use of drugs or alcohol while at work increased 12 percent from 272 to 305.
This is the sixth consecutive annual increase.
- Violence and other injuries by persons or animals increased 3 percent in 2018, due to an 11 percent increase in
work-related suicides from 275 to 304.
- Fatal falls, slips, and trips decreased 11 percent to 791, after reaching a series high of 887 in 2017. This decline
was due to a 14 percent drop in falls to a lower level (713 to 615), the lowest total since 2013.
Read the source article at U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Home
