Decrease in Workplace Fatalities Encouraging – More Must Be Done to Improve Workplace Safety
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has published a summary of the findings of the 2023 National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, which shows a 3.7% year-over-year percentage decrease in workplace fatalities. In 2023, there were 5,283 workplace fatalities which occurred at a rate of 3.5 per 100,000 full-time workers, down from 3.7 in 2022. There was one reported fatality every 99 minutes in the United States in 2023.
Construction was the sector with the highest number of fatalities (1,075), as has been the case every year since 2011. Slips, trips, and falls were the most common cause of death in this sector (39.2%) followed by transportation incidents. Across all industry sectors, transportation incidents were the most frequent type of fatal event, accounting for 36.8% of all workplace fatalities in 2023. There were 740 fatalities due to violent acts, with homicides accounting for 61.9% of violent acts and 8.7% of all work-related fatalities. 162 workplace fatalities were due to opioid use.
The majority of fatalities were men, with women accounting for 8.5% of all workplace deaths; however, women had the highest number of fatalities in the private healthcare and social assistance industry sector (63). Workers between 55 and 64 had the highest number of fatalities in 2023 and accounted for 20.6% of all fatalities, with workers between 25 and 34 experiencing the highest number of fatalities due to violent acts.
“[The] report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is more positive news for worker safety and health. In November, the bureau reported a 20-year low in the rate of non-fatal worker injuries and illnesses in 2023, and we are further encouraged by the news that the number and rate of fatal worker injuries also dropped in 2023,” said Doug Parker, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health. “There was a meaningful decline in the number of fatal injuries to Black workers of 10.2 percent, and the rate for Latino workers dropped from 4.6 to 4.4 per 100,000 workers. Addressing high rates among these populations and recognizing the disproportionate impact of work hazards on workers of color enable more workers to end their shifts safely.”
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