Occupational injuries down for 5th straight year
Whatever OH professionals are doing seems to be working. Occupational injuries and illnesses were down for the fifth straight year in 1997, according to a recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Washington, DC.
Labor Secretary Alexis Herman, in a recent press release, praised the decline and noted that it was particularly good news in light of the booming economy. Employment is up, yet the number of injuries and illnesses has continued to drop steadily for five years, she said.
Same number of injuries, more work hours
There were a total of 6.1 million injuries and illness reported in private industry workplaces in 1997, which amounts to 7.1 cases per 100 full-time workers.
That is about the same number of injuries and illnesses as in 1996, but work hours increased 3% in 1997, resulting in a decrease in the rate of injuries from 7.4 per 100 full-time workers in 1996 to 7.1 in 1997.
Most of the reported incidents were serious enough to affect work performance. Of the 6.1 million incidents, 5.7 million resulted in lost work time, medical treatment, loss of consciousness, or transfer to another job. Manufacturing accounted for three-fifths of the 430,000 new occupational illnesses reported in 1997, and 64% of those cases involved repetitive stress or hearing loss. Of the repeated trauma cases, 72% were in manufacturing.
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