Washington — A total of 5,070 workers died from on-the-job injuries in 2024 – a 4% decrease from 2023, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries data released Feb. 19 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows.
The rate of fatal workplace injuries declined to 3.3 per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers from 3.5 per 100,000 FTEs in 2023.
“The decrease in fatal injuries in 2024 was largely driven by a 16.2% drop in fatalities due to exposure to harmful substances or environments (to 687 cases from 820),” a BLS press release states. “This decrease was in turn driven by a decline in drug or alcohol overdoses, which accounted for 59.7% of fatalities in this category, dropping to 410 fatal injuries in 2024 from 512 fatalities in 2023.”
In addition:
- Transportation-related incidents were the No. 1 cause of work-related death (1,937) and accounted for 38.2% of the fatalities. In 2023, 1,942 workers died in transportation-related incidents.
- The transportation and material moving occupational group had the most fatalities (1,391) – a 7.5% decrease from the 1,495 deaths in 2023. The fatality rate for this group was 12.5 per 100,000 FTEs, down from 13.6 in 2023.
- Fatal slips, trips and falls decreased 4.6% – to 844 from 885 in 2023. Nearly 11% of those deaths in 2024 resulted from a fall of 30 feet or higher.
- Deaths caused by slips, trips and falls among construction and extraction workers decreased 7.5% – to 370 from 400 in 2023. Overall, 1,032 construction and extraction workers died in 2024.
The CFOI data release is the second of two annual BLS reports. The first, released Jan. 22, analyzes nonfatal injuries and illnesses among workers in the private sector. The release of the reports was delayed around two months because of the federal government shutdown that took place from Oct. 1 to Nov. 12.
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Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication