August 31, 2001—A total of 5,915 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2000—a decline of about 2 percent from 1999—according to the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), US Department of Labor. The decline occurred even though overall employment increased in 2000. The number of job-related deaths from highway incidents, the most frequent fatal work injury, declined for the first time since the fatality census was first conducted in 1992. Fatalities resulting from electrocutions, fires and explosions, and contact with objects or equipment also were down in 2000. Fatal job-related falls and homicides both increased.
Construction recorded the highest number of fatal work injuries of any industry, although the total for the industry was down about 3 percent in 2000—the first decline for construction since 1996. Fatal work injuries in manufacturing (down 7 percent) and in agriculture, forestry, and fishing (down 12 percent) reached the lowest levels recorded for those industries. The number of fatal work injuries in the mining industry, however, was higher in 2000, led by an increase in fatal injuries in the oil and gas extraction industry. Fatalities also were higher in retail trade, largely as a result of the increase in workplace homicides.
The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, part of the BLS occupational safety and health statistics program, provides the most complete count of fatal work injuries available. The program uses diverse state and federal data sources to identify, verify, and profile fatal work injuries.
The complete report can be obtained by visiting the BLS Web site, e-mailing your address to CFOIstaff@bls.gov, or writing to Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE, Room 3180, Washington, DC 20212.
