Fatal work injuries in Massachusetts for 2010 were reportedly down when compared to 2009, but the final numbers won’t be posted until Spring of 2012. Preliminary results generally increase by 3 percent when the final report comes out, or at least they have each of the last three years.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Fatal Occupational Injuries Report, so far 51 fatalities have been reported on the job in Massachusetts for 2010 compared to the final count of 64 in 2009.
In a recent statement, U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis said “An average 12 workers die on the job every day, and that reality continues to drive the work of the Labor Department.”
Boston workers’ compensation attorneys find it inexcusable for anyone to die on the job considering employers have the responsibility to keep work conditions safe and hazard free. Too many times, we see employers letting safety issues go undetected or unresolved resulting in transportation incidents, fall accidents, struck-by accidents, and employee exposure to harmful substances.
The 2010 Fatal Work Injury Census reported the following key findings:
- Nationwide, there were more than 4,500 fatal work injuries reported in 2010, only four less than the final tally of 4,551 reported in 2009. Given the fact that the preliminary count increases by 3 percent as it has the last 3 years, we could see as many as 4,683 work fatalities in 2010 when all is said and done.
- The most work accidents resulting in death for Massachusetts workers in 2010 were related to fall accidents (15), transportation incidents (14) and assaults or violent acts (12).
- Police officers reported the biggest increase in work fatalities on the job nationwide in 2010 at 40 percent; there were 96 deaths in 2009 compared to 134 law enforcement fatalities in 2010.
- Workers of the non-Hispanic black or African-American ethnic origin reported a 9 percent decrease in occupational fatalities compared to a 2 percent increase in fatal injuries at work for the non-Hispanic white ethnic background.
- Work fatalities by self-employed workers declined by 6 percent nationwide from 2009 to 2010, compared to an increase of 2 percent in occupational fatalities for salary and wage workers.
- Workplace homicides involving women nationwide rose 14 percent in 2010, compared to an overall decrease of 7 percent for workers involved in violent acts or assaults at work.
- Fatal fire incidents at work more than doubled in 2010 from 2009 reporting a total of 109 in 2010 compared to 53 in 2009. The total for 2010 was the highest fire-related accident death total at work reported since 2003.
- There was a decrease by 10 percent from 2009 to 2010 in private construction sector deaths. Consequently, since the peak in construction jobs in 2006, work fatalities at construction sites have declined by almost 40 percent.
- The work injury rate for mining deaths at job sites rose substantially from 12.4 per 100,000 FTE’s in 2009 to 19.9 per 100,000 in 2010. This, in large part, is due to the multiple occupational deaths reported at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig and Upper Big Branch Mine incidents, which took several lives.
- As a result, workplace deaths in the private mining industry almost doubled from 2009 to 2010, reporting 99 fatal injuries and 172 fatal injuries respectively. Nationally, this was approximately a 70 percent increase overall from one year to the next.
If you or a family member is injured at work in Boston or the surrounding areas, contact a workers’ compensation attorney at Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers to help you sort out the complexities of the case. For a free appointment to discuss your claim, call (617) 777-7777.
More Blog Entries:
Grain Bins Increasing Risks of Work-Related Accidents in Boston and Elsewhere, Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Blog, September 2, 2011.
Company Ordered to Pay Out $615,000 after Ignoring the Federal Railroad Safety Act, Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Blog, August 26, 2011.