Internet: www.bls.gov/ro5/  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
GENERAL INFORMATION: (312) 353-1880 Thursday, November 6, 2008
MEDIA CONTACT: Paul LaPorte 
(312) 353-1138  

 

Workplace Fatalities in Iowa for 2007

Fatal work injuries in Iowa totaled 88 in 2007 according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.  (See table A.)  Regional Commissioner Jay A. Mousa noted that total work-related fatalities in Iowa in 2007 increased by 17 over the previous year.  Please note that the 2007 results are preliminary; final results will be released in April 2009.  The most frequent types of fatal workplace events in Iowa in 2007 were highway crashes (27), workers being struck by an object or equipment (12), and nonhighway transportation incidents, such as those that occur on a farm or industrial premises (10).  Taken together, these three events 1/ accounted for more than one-half of workplace fatalities in the State.

 
Work fatalities resulting from highway crashes (officially titled highway incidents) in 2007 were the highest for both the State and Nation. The number of work-related highway incidents in Iowa increased by 11 over the year, from 16 in 2006 to 27 in 2007. Highway crashes accounted for 31 percent of workplace deaths in Iowa and 24 percent nationally.


On-the-job fatalities in Iowa from being struck by an object (12) increased from 5 in 2006 and accounted for 14 percent of the State’s total fatal work incidents in 2007.  Nationwide, being struck by an object represented 9 percent of all work-related fatalities in 2007.

 
Nonhighway transportation incidents were responsible for 10 on-the-job fatalities in Iowa, compared to 11 during the prior year.  Nonhighway transportation incidents accounted for 11 percent of Iowa’s workplace fatalities in 2007, and 5 percent for the nation.


Other work-related fatal events in Iowa in 2007 with at least 5 instances were falls to a lower level (9), and workers being caught in or compressed by equipment or objects (5). 

Table A. Fatal occupational injuries in Iowa by selected event groups, 1992-2007
Year Total fatalities Highway crashes Struck by Object Nonhighway transportation incidents
Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

1992

 110 25 23 16 15 16 15

1993

 88 25 28 8 9 8 9

1994

 74 16 22 4 5 20 27

1995

 54 9 17 3 6 5 9

1996

 70 13 19 5 7 12 17

1997

 80 22 28 6 8 10 13

1998

 68 9 13 6 9 12 18

1999

 80 22 28 14 18 10 13

2000

 71 16 23 6 8 11 15

2001

 62 16 26 6 10 6 10

2002

 57 9 16 11 19 9 16

2003

 76 17 22 7 9 16 21

2004

 82 13 16 11 13 13 16

2005

 90 16 18 12 13 18 20

2006

 71 16 23 5 7 11 15

2007

 88 27 31 12 14 10 11

NOTE: Totals for 2007 are preliminary.

 

Nationwide, a total of 5,488 fatal work injuries were reported in 2007, a decrease of 6 percent from the revised total of 5,840 fatal work injuries reported in 2006.  While these results are considered preliminary, this figure represents the smallest annual total since the series began in 1992.  (See table B.)  Highway crashes in 2007 accounted for nearly one out of every four fatal work injuries and continued to lead all other events in the frequency of on-the-job fatalities.  Still, the 2007 count of 1,311 fatal highway crashes was the lowest annual total since 1993.  The 2007 total of 733 fatal falls to a lower level was the third highest since the fatality census began, but was slightly lower than the 738 recorded in 2006.  The number of workers (504) who were fatally injured from being struck by objects or equipment in 2007 was at the lowest level since the fatality census began and represented a 14-percent decline from the 2006 total. Two other events were also at series lows in 2007—fatal work injuries involving electrocutions (212) and fatalities resulting from fires and explosions (151).

Workplace homicides increased by 13 percent to 610 in 2007 from the series low of 540 that was reported in 2006.  Even after the increase, workplace homicides have declined 44 percent from the high of 1,080 reported in 1994.


Key characteristics of workplace fatalities in Iowa in 2007:

(Detailed data tables are available at www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/tgs/2007/iiffi19.htm.)

--- Men accounted for 89 percent of the work-related fatalities in the State with 78.  Transportation incidents, which include highway, nonhighway, pedestrian, air, water, and rail, accounted for 58 percent of the male deaths.

 
-- In Iowa, 92 percent of those who died from a workplace injury were white non-Hispanics.  The most frequent cause of fatalities for white, non-Hispanics was transportation incidents (48).


-- Workers 25-54 years old—the prime working age group—accounted for 58 percent of the State’s work-related fatalities in 2007; those 55 years or older made up 35 percent.  Nationally, workers 25-54 years old accounted for 63 percent of on-the-job fatalities, and those 55 and older, 27 percent.


-- Of the 88 workers killed on the job in Iowa, 61 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remaining 39 percent were self-employed.


-- Among industry sectors, agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting had the largest number of fatalities (29) followed by construction (15). Transportation incidents accounted for about one-half of the fatalities in these two sectors.

 
-- Management occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 28, the majority of which were agricultural managers (21).  Transportation and material moving occupations suffered the second-highest number of work-related fatalities with 26.  Truck drivers (heavy and tractor/trailer) accounted for the largest share of this group’s fatalities (14).  


Table B. Fatal occupational injuries in the United States by selected event groups, 1992-2007
Year Total fatalities Highway crashes Struck by Object Nonhighway transportation incidents
Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent

1992

 6,217 1,158 19 557 9 436 7

1993

 6,331 1,242 20 565 9 392 6

1994

 6,632 1,343 20 591 9 409 6

1995

 6,275 1,346 21 547 9 387 6

1996

 6,202 1,346 22 582 9 374 6

1997

 6,238 1,393 22 579 9 377 6

1998

 6,055 1,442 24 520 9 388 6

1999

 6,054 1,496 25 585 10 352 6

2000

 5,920 1,365 23 571 10 399 7

2001(1)

 5,915 1,409 24 553 9 326 6

2002

 5,534 1,373 25 505 9 323 6

2003

 5,575 1,353 24 531 10 347 6

2004

 5,764 1,398 24 602 10 338 6

2005

 5,734 1,437 25 607 11 340 6

2006(2)

 5,840 1,356 23 589 10 345 6

2007

 5,488 1,311 24 504 9 292 5

NOTE: Totals for 2007 are preliminary.
(1) Totals for 2001 exclude fatalities due to the events of September 11, 2001 which claimed the lives of 2,886 persons in work status.
(2) The BLS national news release issued August 9, 2007, reported a total of 5,703 fatal work injuries for calendar year 2006. Since then, an additional 137 job-related fatalities were identified, bringing the total job-related fatality count for 2006 to 5,840.

Additional Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries data are available on the BLS Internet site at www.bls.gov/iif/.  For personal assistance or further information on the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries program, as well as other Bureau programs, contact the Midwest Information Office at (312) 353-1880, menu option 0, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. CT.  Information on the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries and other programs and surveys are available on our Web site at www.bls.gov/ro5/.

1/ Fatal events are categorized into several major groupings including transportation incidents, assaults and violent acts, and falls, among others.  These major groups are further broken down into more detailed groups.  See the Occupational Injury & Illness Classification System (OIICS) Manual at www.bls.gov/iif/oshoiics.htm for detailed information on the categories of fatalities used in this census.

TECHNICAL NOTE

Background of the program


The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, part of the BLS occupational safety and health statistics program, compiles a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. in each calendar year.  The program uses diverse State, federal, and independent data sources to identify, verify, and describe fatal work injuries.  This assures counts are as complete and accurate as possible.


For technical information about the CFOI program, please go to the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS Web site.  To get to that document, click on Workplace Injuries on the BLS home page, scroll down to IIF Documentation, and then click on “BLS Handbook of Methods.”  The technical information and definitions for the CFOI Program are in Chapter 9, Part 2 of the BLS Handbook of Methods.


Federal/State agency coverage


The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries includes data for all fatal work injuries, whether the decedent was working in a job covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) or other federal or State agencies or was outside the scope of regulatory coverage.  Thus, any comparison between the BLS fatality census counts and those released by other agencies should take into account the different coverage requirements and definitions being used by each agency.


Several federal and State agencies have jurisdiction over workplace safety and health. OSHA and affiliated agencies in States with approved safety programs cover the largest portion of the nation's workers.  However, injuries and illnesses occurring in certain industries or activities, such as coal, metal, and nonmetal mining and highway, water, rail, and air transportation, are excluded from OSHA coverage because they are covered by other federal agencies, such as the Mine Safety and Health Administration and various agencies within the Department of Transportation.


Acknowledgments


BLS thanks the Iowa Divison of Labor Services for their efforts in collecting accuate, comprehensive, and useful data on fatal work injuries. BLS appreciates the efforts of all federal, State, local, and private sector entities that submitted source documents used to identify fatal work injuries.  Among these agencies are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; the National Transportation Safety Board; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Mine Safety and Health Administration; the Employment Standards Administration (Federal Employees' Compensation and Longshore and Harbor Workers' divisions); the Federal Railroad Administration; the Department of Energy; State vital statistics registrars, coroners, and medical examiners; State departments of health, labor and industries, and workers' compensation agencies; State and local police departments; and State farm bureaus.

Detailed statistics on fatal occupational injuries in Iowa can be obtained from tables at www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/tgs/2007/iiffi19.htm.

 



 

Last Modified Date: November 6, 2008