ACP Pubs

Christina Fisher

North Carolina Workplace Fatalities Post Record Decrease
April 2, 2008

Fatalities from workplace accidents fell 30 percent in North Carolina last year — the largest decrease ever recorded according to the N.C. Department of Labor (NCDOL). The number of fatal work accidents fell from 65 in 2006 to 45 in 2007. NCDOL investigated 68 workplace fatalities in 2005 and 75 in 2004. In 2000, North Carolina had a workplace injury and illness rate of 5.7 cases for every 100 fulltime workers in the private sector.

            The latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures show by 2006 the state’s injury and illness rate had dropped to 4.0 in the private sector. The national rate was 4.4 for 2006.

Of the 45 fatalities in 2007, 20 occurred in construction. Another 11 took place in manufacturing. Seven fatalities occurred in the retail trade and wholesale trade sectors, and three fatalities occurred in the services industry. The forestry industry had two fatalities, as did the transportation industry.

Among racial groups, whites had 30 fatalities and blacks had eight. There were six Hispanic victims, a 57-percent decrease from the 14 in 2006. There was one Asian victim.

The leading cause of the work-related fatalities was being crushed by an object,, which occurred with 18 of the fatalities, followed by 12 fatalities involving being struck by an object. Six North Carolinians suffered fatal slips or falls. Two workers were electrocuted, and two died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Another five workers died in various other event categories.

Posted by Christina Fisher on April 2, 2008 | Comments (0)