by Brianna Crandall — October 10, 2012—A preliminary total of 4,609 fatal work injuries were recorded in the United States in 2011, down from a final count of 4,690 fatal work injuries in 2010, according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The rate of fatal work injury for U.S. workers in 2011 was 3.5 per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers, as compared to a final rate of 3.6 per 100,000 for 2010.
Key preliminary findings of the 2011 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries:
By industry sector or occupation
- Fatal work injuries in the private construction sector declined to 721 in 2011 from 774 in 2010, a decline of 7% and the fifth consecutive year of lower fatality counts. Fatal construction injuries are down nearly 42% since 2006.
- Among service-providing industries in the private sector, fatal work injuries in transportation and warehousing accounted for 733 fatal work injuries in 2011, an increase of 11% over the final 2010 count (661 fatalities) and the highest count since 2008.
- Fatal work injuries in the professional and business services sector were up 16%, led by an increase in fatalities in landscape services to 167 in 2011 from 133 in 2010.
- Fatal occupational injuries among government workers increased by 2% from 2010 to 495. Local government increased to 294 in 2011 from 269 in 2010 due to a 24% increase in police protection. Fatal work injuries were lower among both state and federal workers.
- Fatal work injuries in the building and grounds cleaning, and maintenance occupational group were up 14% to 265 fatalities in 2011—the highest level since 2006. The biggest increases within this occupational group were among landscaping and groundskeeping workers and among tree trimmers and pruners.
By incident
- Violence and other injuries by persons or animals accounted for 780 fatalities, or about 17% of the fatal injuries in the workplace in 2011. Included in this count are 458 homicides and 242 suicides.
- Transportation incidents accounted for more than 2 out of every 5 fatal work injuries in 2011.
- Fatal falls, slips, or trips took the lives of 666 workers in 2011, or about 14% of all fatal work injuries. Falls to lower level accounted for 541 of those fatalities.
- A total of 472 workers were fatally injured after being struck by objects or equipment, including 219 workers who were struck by falling objects or equipment and 192 who were struck by powered vehicles or mobile equipment not in normal operation.
By demographic characteristics
- Fatal injuries to both wage and salary workers and self-employed workers declined slightly in 2011.
- Fatal work injuries increased among non-Hispanic black or African-American workers and among Hispanic or Latino workers in 2011, but declined among non-Hispanic white workers (down 3%).
- Fatal work injuries involving workers 55 years of age and older as well as workers under the age of 18 were both lower in 2011, but fatal work injuries among workers in the 20 to 24 age group were up nearly 18%.
For more information and charts of all the preliminary data, visit the BLS Injury, Illness and Fatality Data Web site.
