Today’s issue of WorkCompRecap features the NSC’s recent statement in response to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ release of its annual Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries Summary for 2021, which found an increase in workplace fatalities of 8.9% from 2020.
The NSC called the increase “devastating”, noting that the data show a fatal occupational injury rate at 3.6 fatalities per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers, up from 3.4 per 100,000 FTE in 2020 and up from the 2019 pre-pandemic rate of 3.5, and reflecting the highest annual rate since 2016. The NSC also noted that workers in transportation and material-moving occupations, the occupational group with the highest number of fatalities, experienced 1,523 fatal work injuries in 2021, an increase of 18.8% from 2020. Furthermore, intentional injury deaths by a person increased 21% for women in 2021 compared to a 9% increase for men. Additionally 23% of all women who die at work involve an intentional injury by a person, showing more must be done to address workplace violence issues for everyone.