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Work
Related Deaths
Drop, But Not Enough
ATLANTA (Reuters
Health) - The number of workplace fatalities has declined over
the last 20 years, but many workers are still at risk, the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia,
said on Thursday.
An estimated
16 people per day in the US are killed on the job, and between
1980 and 1997, more than 100,000 Americans lost their lives at
work, according to a report in the April 27th issue of the CDC's
Mortality and Morbidity Weekly Report.
The good news
is that the rate of occupational injury deaths did decline by
45% in that time period, from 7.4 deaths per 100,000 workers in
1980 to 4.1 deaths per 100,000 in 1997.
``We really
can't identify specific reasons for the decline, but we think
that changes in the workplace, improved hazard awareness, better
regulations, new technology and improved mechanization may play
a role,'' Suzanne Marsh, with the CDC's National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), told Reuters Health.
According
to the report, the industries with the highest death rates were
mining, agriculture/forestry/fishing, and construction. Males
accounted for 93% of all deaths, with a death rate eleven times
that of females.
Motor vehicle
accidents were the leading cause of injury-related death, accounting
for 24% of the total deaths; in 1990, homicides surpassed machine-related
deaths as the second-leading cause of occupational injury deaths,
CDC researchers note.
A related
report in the same issue indicates that Americans experience about
3.6 million nonfatal injuries that are treated in an emergency
department per year. However, these hospital-treated injuries
represent only about one third of all injuries that require more
than a day off from work or medical treatment, according to the
CDC. Adolescent workers, in particular, may be at risk for being
harmed on the job.
``Workers
aged 15 to 17 years had a particularly high rate of burns, ranging
from 2- to 10-fold higher than that for older workers,'' CDC researchers
note, suggesting that they may not fully appreciate their risk
of injury in the workplace.
``Many of
these injuries are preventable,'' Dr. Larry Jackson with NIOSH
told Reuters Health. He suggests that employers can help protect
workers by having a safety plan in place as well as protective
equipment and appropriate first aid treatment available.
One particularly
hazardous type of machine is known as a compacter or baler, and
it is used to crush paper, metal, plastic or other materials into
bales or bundles for disposal. Such units are routinely used in
recycling centers, manufacturing plants and even retail and wholesale
stores.
Between 1992
and 2000, there were at least 34 deaths related to the use of
compactors and balers--one a 16-year-old boy working in a produce
market.
Some of the
reasons for the deaths included attempting to clear jams without
shutting down the controls, using machines with defective safety
guards, and operating the machine without determining the location
of safety workers, according to the CDC.
SOURCE:
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 2001;50:309-313, 313-317,
Reference
Source 89
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