Number of Job Injuries and Illnesses Requiring Days Off Work Drops in Texas in 2005

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 8, 2007
News Release

FOR MORE INFORMATION
John Greeley @ (512) 804-4202
Michelle Banks @ (512) 804-4203

AUSTIN, TX — A total of 69,340 nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work were reported in Texas private industry for 2005 according to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses. This was a 6 percent decline from the 74,080 cases reported in Texas in 2004 and more than 15 percent less than the 82,110 cases in Texas in 2003.  

In 2005, there were 100.9 injuries and illnesses per 10,000 full-time equivalent workers in Texas, more than 25 percent lower than the national rate of 135.9 percent. The Texas rate declined 8 percent from the 2004 rate of 110.0 and 19 percent from the rate of 125.1 reported in 2003.

The severity of injuries and illnesses in both the Texas and U.S. surveys for 2005 was unchanged from 2004, based on data for median days away from work — the point at which half the cases involved more days and half involved fewer days. The median days away from work for both 2005 and 2004 were 9 days for Texas and 7 days nationwide. 

The annual BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses is conducted in cooperation with the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC). The DWC collects survey data in order to assist employers, safety professionals, and policymakers in identifying occupational safety and health issues in the state.  The DWC also provides various safety and health services to promote safe and healthy workplaces, including free safety and health consultations on Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations; regional and on-site safety training; free safety and health publications; free safety training video loans; guidance on return-to-work programs and drug-free workplace programs; and the Safety Violations Hotline.  For more information on these services, visit the TDI website at http://www.tdi.state.tx.us/wc/mr/division.html or call 800-687-7080.

This is the third release reporting on 2005 data from the BLS workplace safety and health statistical series.  The first release, in August 2006, covered work-related fatalities from the 2005 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries.  In October 2006, BLS reported that there were 246,000 nonfatal injuries and illnesses in Texas, in 2005, based on the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses.  This release covers the circumstances of the injuries and illnesses as well as the characteristics of the workers involved in the 69,340 of those that required days away from work. 

Industry

The service-providing industries reported almost 58 percent more cases than goods-producing industries, while the rate per 10,000 workers in service-providing industries was over 23 percent less than that for goods-producing.  In the service-providing sector, air transportation experienced the highest number of cases (4,080), the highest incidence rate (868.8), and the highest median days away from work. Two of the top three industries that reported the most cases and accounted for 25 percent of all cases in the goods producing sector were in construction:  specialty trade contractors with 4,980 cases and heavy and civil engineering construction with 1,530 cases. 

Chart 1.  Median days away from work due to nonfatal occupational injury or illness by age of worker, Texas, private industry, 2005.

Median days⁷ away from work (All ages = 9 days)

Demographic

Workers age 25 to 44 accounted for almost 51 percent of all cases involving days away from work.  Younger workers, 16 to19 years of age experienced 51 percent more lost workday cases than workers 65 and over.  Older workers, age 65 and over recorded 63 percent more median days than all other age groups.  Workers age 16 to 19 and workers 65 and over reported 3 times as many cases in the service-providing industries as those in the goods-producing industries.  One-third of the cases reported for workers age 45 to 54 resulted in 31 days or more away from work and more than one-half for workers 65 and over.  The majority of cases for workers age 16 to19 resulted in one day away from work with 22 percent.

Race or ethnicity was unreported in 30 percent of the cases with days away from work in Texas, as it was for the Nation in 2005. This resulted in a 3 percent increase from 2004 in which this demographic was not reported in Texas.

Workers with 1 to 5 years of service reported the highest number of cases with days away from work but ranked third in median days.  Workers with more than 5 years of service reported the second highest number of cases while reporting the highest median days.  Although workers with less than 3 months of service had the fewest number of cases, they reported the second highest median days.

Chart 2.  Percent distribution of nonfattal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work by length of service, Texas, provate industry, 2005.

Occupation

The highest number of cases reported by major occupational group was for transportation and material moving with 16,860, almost one-fourth (25 percent) of all cases in Texas, 2005. In terms of occupations, truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer experienced the most cases with 4,910, the highest incidence rate of ? per 10,000 workers and the highest median days away from work with 20.  The second highest number of cases reported by major occupational group was for service with 13,040; nearly one-fifth (20 percent).  While customer service representatives reported considerably fewer cases with 1,620, they faced the second highest median days away from work at 15 days.

Chart 3.  Median days for Occupations with the most injuries and illnesses 
with days away from work, Texas, private industry, 2005

Case Characteristics

Sprains and strains remained the leading nature of injury and illness accounting for 44 percent of all days away from work cases; however, the rate declined nearly 13 percent from 2004.  The trade, transportation and utilities industries reported the highest incidence rate of 75.4 cases per 10,000 full-time workers for this nature category. Sprains and strains also accounted for more than 58 percent of the natures in the education and health services industries. The incidence rate for carpal tunnel syndrome cases decreased by 60 percent.

In looking at the part of body affected, the trunk was affected most, with nearly 33 percent of all cases.  Although cases involving the back showed a higher rate of 20.9, shoulder-related cases recorded the highest median days away from work with 24.  Over 42 percent of all cases involving the neck resulted in 31 days or more away from work.  Cases affecting the head reported the largest incidence rate decline of 22 percent and back declined 13 percent.

Except for a slight increase in incidence rates involving machinery, all other sources of injuries and illnesses reported decreases.  Although the rate of cases involving floors, walkways and ground surfaces decreased 14 percent, this category remained the main source of injury and illness in 2005.

Contact with objects and equipment, overexertion, and falls to same level were the leading events contributing to injuries and illness with days away from work, although the incidence rates in each category declined in both 2004 and 2005.  The incidence rate for assaults and violent acts by person declined 42 percent and repetitive motion cases fell 41 percent.  Increases from 2004 to 2005 were seen in cases involving slips, trips, loss of balance-without fall 18 percent) and transportation accidents (8 percent).

Most events occurred from 8 a.m. to 12:00 noon, or in over 28 percent of private industry cases in Texas. In the professional and business services industries, the majority of events occurred from 8:01 p.m. to 12:00 midnight or in over 24 percent of the cases resulting in days away from work, and less than 1 hour on the job in over 25 percent of the cases.  Time of event was not reported in 15 percent of the cases, and hours on the job before an event occurred was not reported in nearly 16 percent of the cases.

The days of the week when most events occurred were Wednesday (20 percent), followed by Monday (19 percent).  In the financial activities industries, 24 percent of the cases occurred on Friday.  Over 34 percent of all events occurring on Friday resulted in 31 days or more away from work and 14 median days away from work.
The DWC will release more in-depth injury and illness analysis by industry in its quarterly newsletter supplement, Safety by the Numbers.  Additional Texas fatal and nonfatal occupational injury and illness data are available by contacting the Division at either 512-804-4659 or 512-804-4599, or injurystatistics@tdi.state.tx.us.
Details about the national BLS injury and illness data can be found at http://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcdnew.htm.

For more information contact:

Last updated: 03/12/2007