Silica eTool: Deaths from Silica in the Workplace

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Occupational Safety & Health Administration
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Deaths from Silica in the Workplace

The first column is the occupational title. The second column (PMR) is the observed number of deaths from silicosis per occupation divided by the expected number of deaths. Therefore, a value of one indicates no additional risk. A value of ten would indicate a risk ten times greater than normal risk of silicosis. The first table below provides risk by occupation and the second provides risk by industry.

OCCUPATION	PMR
Miscellaneous metal and plastic machine operators	168.44
Hand molders and shapers, except jewelers	64.12
Crushing and grinding machine operators	50.97
Hand molding, casting, and forming occupations	35.70
Molding and casting machine operators	30.60
Mining machine operators	19.61
Mining occupations, *n.e.c.	15.33
Construction trades, *n.e.c.	14.77
Grinding, abrading, buffing, and polishing machine operators	8.47
Heavy equipment mechanics	7.72
Miscellaneous material moving equipment operators	6.92
Millwrights	6.56
Crane and tower operators	6.02
Brickmasons and stonemasons	4.71
Painters, construction and maintenance	4.50
Furnace, kiln, oven operators, except food	4.10
Laborers, except construction	3.79
Operating engineers	3.56
Welders and cutters	3.01
Machine operators, not specified	2.86
Not specified mechanics and repairers	2.84
Supervisors, production occupations	2.73
Construction laborers	2.14
Machinists	1.79
Janitors and cleaners	1.78

INDUSTRY	PMR
Metal mining	69.51
Miscellaneous nonmetallic mineral and stone products	55.31
Nonmetallic mining and quarrying, except fuel	49.77
Iron and steel foundries	31.15
Pottery and related products	30.73
Structural clay products	27.82
Coal mining	9.26
Blast furnaces, steelworks, rolling and finishing mills	6.49
Miscellaneous fabricated metal products	5.87
Miscellaneous retail stores	4.63
Machinery, except electrical, *n.e.c.	3.96
Other primary metal industries	3.63
Industrial and miscellaneous chemicals	2.72
Not specified manufacturing industries	2.67
Construction	1.82

*n.e.c. – not elsewhere classified

See References 17 and 18 in the Bibliography.

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