Occupational injury

An occupational injury is bodily damage resulting from working. The most usual organs involved are the spine, hands, the head, lungs, eyes, skeleton, and skin.

Common causes of industrial injury are poor ergonomics, manual handling of heavy loads, misuse or failure of equipment, exposure to general hazards, inadequate safety training and clothing, jewellery or long hair that becomes tangled in machinery.

General hazards in a work environment include electricity, explosive materials, fire, flammable gases, heat, height, high pressure gases and liquids, hot gases and liquids, powerful or sharp moving machinery, oxygen-free gases or spaces, poisonous gases, radiation, toxic materials, work on, near or under water, work on, near or under weak or heavy structures.

There are many methods of preventing or reducing industrial injuries, including anticipation of problems by risk assessment, safety training, control banding, personal protective equipment safety guards, mechanisms on machinery, and safety barriers. In addition, past problems can be analyzed to find their root causes by using a technique called root cause analysis.

Statistics

It has been estimated that worldwide there are more than 350,000 workplace fatalities and more than 270 million workplace injuries annually. In 2000 there were approximately 2.9 billion workers worldwide. Occupational injuries resulted in the loss of 3.5 years of healthy life for every 1,000 workers. 300,000 of the occupational injuries resulted in a fatality.

The most common occupations associated with these hazards vary throughout the world depending on the major industries in a particular country. Overall, the most hazardous occupations are in farming, fishing, and forestry. In more developed countries, construction and manufacturing occupations are associated with high rates of spine, hand, and wrist injuries.

United States

In the United States in 2012, 4,383 workers died from job injuries, 92% of which were men, and nearly 3 million nonfatal workplace injuries & illness were reported which costed businesses a collective loss of $198.2 billion and 60 million workdays.

In the United States in 2007, 5,488 workers died from job injuries, 92% of which were men, and 49,000 died from work-related injuries. NIOSH estimates that 4 million workers in the U.S. in 2007 suffered from non-fatal work related injuries or illnesses.

According to data from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and Bureau of Labor Statistics, an average of 15 workers die from traumatic injuries each day in the United States, and an additional 200 workers are hospitalized.

Most Dangerous Sectors

In the U.S. the Bureau of Labor Statistics makes available extensive statistics on workplace accidents and injuries. For example:

Impact of Injuries at Work

There were nearly 3 million nonfatal workplace injuries & illness were reported which costed businesses a collective loss of $198.2 billion and 60 million workdays. In a study in the state of Washington, injured workers were followed for 14 years to determine the long term effects of work injury on employment. The work injuries resulted in an average of 1.06 years of lost productivity for each of the 31,588 allowed claims.

Most Common Injuries

As in the United Kingdom, slips, trips and falls are common and account for 20-40% of disabling occupational injuries. Often these accidents result in a back injury that can persist to a permanent disability. In the United States, a high risk of back injuries occurs in the health care industry. 25% of reported injuries in health care workers in the state of Pennsylvania are for back pain. Among nurses, the prevalence of lower back pain may be as high as 72% mostly as a result of transferring patients. Fortunately, some of these injuries can be prevented with the availability of patient lifts, improved worker training, and allocation of more time to perform work procedures. Another common type of injury is carpal tunnel syndrome associated with overuse of the hands and wrists. Studies on a cohort of newly hired workers have thus far identified forceful gripping, repetitive lifting of > 1 kg, and using vibrating power tools as high risk work activities.

Employees at Risk

Perhaps the most important personal factor that predisposes to an increased risk is age. In the United States in 1998 17 million workers were over age 55 and by 2018 this population is expected to more than double. Workers in this age group are more likely to suffer from lower back pain that may be worsened by work conditions that normally do not affect a younger worker. Older workers are also more likely by be killed in a construction related fall. They are also at higher risk for injury due to age-related hearing loss, visual impairment, and use of multiple prescription medications that has been linked to higher rates of work injuries. In addition to age, other personal risk factors for injury include obesity particularly its associated risk with back injury, and depression.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom in 2013/2014, 133 people were killed at work. Of those 133 people, 89 were employed, while 44 were self-employed.

Most Dangerous Sectors

Construction: 42 deaths

Agriculture: 27 deaths

Waste and Recycling: four deaths

Other: 60 deaths

Of all the workplace accidents that resulted in death, the most common were falls from height, contact with moving machinery and being struck by a vehicle. These types of accidents resulted in over half of all recorded deaths.

Number of Injuries at Work

In 2013/2014, an estimated 629,000 injuries occurred at work.

Of these injuries 629,000 injuries, 203,000 led to more than 3 days absence from work. Of these, over 148,000 resulted in the victim being absent from work for more than 7 days.

Most Common Injuries

Slips, trips and falls account for over a third of all injuries that happen at work. Incorrect handling of items was the most common cause of injuries that led to absences from work of more than 7 days. Upper limb injuries represented 47.3% of workplace injuries in 2010-2011, the most common area injured.

In all, over 1,900,000 working days were lost in 2013/2014 due to slips, trips and falls.

Employer Prosecutions

The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted 582 cases in 2013/2014, with at least one conviction secured in 547 cases (94%).

Local authorities prosecuted a total of 92 cases during the same period, with at least one conviction achieved in 89 cases (97%).

A total of 13,790 notices were issued by the HSE and local authorities, with over £16,700,000 issued in fines.

Employees at Risk

Unsurprisingly, occupation is the biggest influence on the risk of workplace injuries. Workers new to the job are at a much higher risk of injury than more experienced staff, while shift workers and part-time staff also have a greater risk of being injured at work.

Taiwan

In Taiwan, there were 14,261 occupational injuries recorded in 2010. 45% of these involved trauma to the upper limbs.

Prevention

Prevention of injuries is a focus of regulation and research. A 2013 Cochrane review found low-quality evidence showing that inspections, especially focused inspections, can reduce work-related injuries in the long term.

See also

• Occupational safety and health
• Occupational disease
• Safety culture
• Work accident

External links

• Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries Charts, 1992-2012
• NIOSH Publications on Traumatic Occupational Injury Topics (2008-2009), National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health