August 30, 2005 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Age and fatal work injuries in 2004

The number of fatal work injuries among older workers (55 years of age and older) rose 10 percent in 2004, but fatalities among younger workers (16 to 24 years of age) declined 6 percent.

Fatal occupational injuries by age, 2003 and 2004
[Chart data—TXT]

The number of fatal work injuries among workers aged 25 to 54 was 3,683 in 2004, about the same as in 2003.

Fatal work injuries among the youngest workers (15 years of age and younger) fell by half, from 25 in 2003 to 12 in 2004.

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 2004" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 05-1598.

 

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