Labor month in review
The
October Review
Fatal work injuries in 2003
Time-use survey results
Job tenure
The original impetus for a new survey of individual time use was an unsuccessful legislative proposal that the Bureau of Labor Statistics "conduct time-use surveys of unremunerated work in the United States," according to Michael Horrigan and Diane Herz抯 overview of the American Time Use Survey (ATUS). In the end, ATUS provides much more than that: the splits between work, leisure, and other activities, where these activities are performed, and who in the family spends how much time at which activities, among others. This survey will prove to be a rich source of research data and valuable input to policymaking.
Dino Drudi and Mark Zak report on multiple-fatality incidents in workplaces in the last five years of the 1990s. One of their conclusions about such tragedies is that the circumstances surrounding them and the industries and occupations in which they are most prevalent are not representative of the universe of fatal occupational injuries.
Julie Hatch examines public sector employment in recession and recovery. She finds that government jobs, particularly at the State government level, rose sharply during the recent recession, but fell back in budget shortfalls that followed the downturn.
A total of 5,559 fatal work injuries were recorded in the United States in 2003, a small increase from the revised total of 5,534 fatal work injuries reported for 2002. The rate at which fatal work injuries occurred in 2003 was 4.0 fatalities per 100,000 workers, unchanged from the rate reported for 2002.
Fatal highway incidents were down in 2003 for the second consecutive year, but continued to account for the highest number of fatal work injuries. The 1,350 fatal highway incidents in 2003 accounted for about one out of every four fatal work injuries. The number of workplace homicides was higher in 2003梩he first increase since 2000. Despite the higher total, the 631 workplace homicides in 2003 represented a 42-percent decline from the high of 1,080 homicides in 1994.
In 2003, agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting had the highest rate of fatal work injuries of any industry sector: 31.2 fatalities per 100,000 workers. The largest number of fatal work injuries in 2003 was in the construction sector. The 1,126 fatal work injuries in private construction accounted for more than one out of every five workplace fatalities in 2003. Additional information is available from "National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2003," news release USDL 04�30.
The new American Time Use Survey (ATUS) has released its first estimates on how Americans spend their time. Among the highlights:
On the days that they worked, employed men worked about an hour more than employed women�0 versus 7.1 hours.
Employed women 18 years and older spent about an hour more per day than employed adult men spent doing household activities and caring for household members.
On days they worked, about 1 in 5 employed persons did some or all of their work at home.
Adults in households without children spent about 1.4 hours more per day engaged in leisure and sports activities than those with children.
Data collection for the ATUS began in January 2003. The survey is sponsored by the Bureau of Labor Statistics and conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. ATUS estimates for 2003 are based on interviews of about 21,000 individuals. Respondents were interviewed only once and reported their activities for the 24-hour period from 4 a.m. on the day before the interview until 4 a.m. on the day of the interview梩heir "diary day." See the article by Michael Horrigan and Diane Herz starting on page 3 for more details about the design and execution of the survey.
Nearly 31 percent of workers age 25 and older had 10 or more years of tenure with their current employer in January 2004. Thirty-two percent of male wage and salary workers age 25 and older had been with their current employer for 10 years or more in January 2004, compared with 29 percent of women. Since January 1983, when the proportions were 38 percent for men and 25 percent for women, the gap between them has narrowed considerably.
In all age categories below age 60, the percentage of men who had 10 years or more of tenure with their current employer is higher than that of women. In the categories age 60 to 64 and age 65 and older, women are more likely than men to have had 10 or more years of tenure. To learn more, see "Employee Tenure in 2004," news release USDL 04�29.
Communications regarding the Monthly Labor Review may be sent to the Editor-in-Chief by e-mail to mlr@bls.gov, by mail at 2 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Room 2850, Washington, DC, 20212, or by fax to (202) 691–7890.
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