August 28, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

On-the-job fatalities due to falls in 2007

The number of fatal on-the-job falls in 2007 rose to a series high of 835—a 39 percent increase since 1992 when the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries program was first conducted.

Workplace fatalities due to falls, 1992-2007
[Chart data—TXT]

The increase for falls overall in 2007 was driven primarily by increases in falls on same level (up 21 percent from 2006) and falls from nonmoving vehicles (up 17 percent).

Falls from roofs, however, were down 13 percent from the number in 2006.

The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, part of the BLS Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities program, provides the most complete count of fatal work injuries available. For more information on fatal work injuries, see "National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2007," (PDF) (HTML) news release USDL 08-1182. Data for 2007 are preliminary. The total for 2001 excludes work-related fatalities that resulted from the September 11 terrorist attacks, which were tabulated separately.

 

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