Fatal work injuries totaled 456 in 2010 for Texas, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Stanley W. Suchman noted that while the 2010 count was preliminary, the number of work-related fatalities in Texas fell by 26 from one year earlier. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 572 in 2000 to a low of 417 in 2002; the 2010 count was the third-lowest on record for the state. (See table 1 and chart 1.)

Nationwide, a preliminary total of 4,547 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2010, about the same as the final count of 4,551 recorded in 2009, according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. Final 2010 CFOI data will be released in Spring 2012.

Highway incidents were the most frequent type of workplace fatality in Texas in 2010, accounting for 134 deaths. (See table 1.) The number of work-related highway deaths in 2010 was notably higher than a year earlier (106), but was comparable to levels recorded from 2005 to 2008. On-the-job fatalities due to homicides declined to 48 in 2010, down from 69 in 2009. Fatal injuries resulting from falls to a lower level decreased from 75 to 45 over the year. Worker fatalities resulting from being struck by an object or equipment were about the same at 35 in 2010 compared with 36 in 2009.

In the United States, highway incidents were also the most frequent fatal workplace event, accounting for 21 percent of fatal work injuries. In Texas, highway incidents accounted for a larger share of work- related fatalities, 29 percent. (See table 2.) Nationwide, falls to a lower level and homicides were the next most frequent types of fatal events, each with 11 percent of total work-related fatalities; in Texas, falls to a lower level and homicides had similar percentage shares. On-the-job fatalities caused by being struck by an object or equipment accounted for 9 percent of work-related deaths nationally compared to 8 percent in Texas.

Additional key characteristics:

• Men accounted for 426, or 93 percent, of the work-related fatalities in the state. (See table 3.) Transportation incidents, which include highway, nonhighway, pedestrian, air, water, and rail, made up 42 percent of these fatalities.
• In Texas, 56 percent of those who died from a workplace injury were white non-Hispanics. Nationwide, this group accounted for 72 percent of work-related deaths.
• Workers 25-54 years old—the prime working age group—accounted for 297, or 65 percent, of the State’s work-related fatalities in 2010. Nationally, workers in this group accounted for 60 percent of on-the-job fatalities.
• Of the 456 occupational fatalities in Texas, 86 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remaining fatalities were among the self-employed. The leading cause of death for wage and salary workers was transportation incidents which accounted for 45 percent of fatal injuries in the State, higher than the U.S share of 41 percent. Transportation incidents, along with assaults and violent acts, were the leading factors in work-related deaths among self-employed workers in Texas, each accounting for 29 percent of on-the-job fatalities.
• The transportation and warehousing sector had the largest number of fatalities, 93, followed by construction with 89. Transportation incidents were responsible for the largest number of work-related deaths in both sectors, accounting for 74 fatal injuries in transportation and warehousing and 33 in construction.
• Transportation and material moving occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities in the state with 140, of which heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers accounted for 84. Workers in construction and extraction jobs had the second-highest fatality count at 98, followed by those employed in installation, maintenance, and repair occupations at 44.

Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries data are available on the BLS Internet site at www.bls.gov/iif/ and detailed data may be accessed from http://data.bls.gov/PDQ/outside.jsp?survey=fi. Further information on the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries program, as well as other Bureau programs, is available on the Southwest Information Office web site at www.bls.gov/ro6/ or by contacting us at 972-850-4800 from 8:00 to 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. CT.

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. during the 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 at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/homch9_a1.htm. The technical information and definitions for the CFOI Program are in Chapter 9, Part III 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.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics thanks the Texas Department of Insurance for their efforts in collecting accurate, comprehensive, and useful data on fatal work injuries. BLS also 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.