July 2003

Half of all workers feel immune to injuries

If you are thinking about entering occupational consulting, here is more information that may help you: More than half of all working Americans feel they are immune to workplace injuries, according to a survey conducted by Missouri Employers Mutual (MEM) Insurance. But statistics prove them wrong. Nationally, workplace deaths are up 6 percent in 2001.

In 2001, 3.9 million people — more than the populations of North Dakota, Montana, Wyoming and Nebraska combined — experienced a disabling injury, according to the National Safety Council. These figures exclude injuries resulting from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. This number has remained relatively constant since 1999. Major contributors include overexertion, coming into contact with an object or piece of equipment, and falls.

These injuries aren’t discriminatory, says MEM vice president of loss prevention Bob Gibson. In 2001, employees in finance, insurance and real estate experienced an injury every 1.8 minutes. Workers in wholesale and retail trades here hurt every 1.4 minutes. Government workers were injured every 1.1 minutes and construction workers were hurt every 8 minutes.

Workplace deaths nationally were on the rise in 2001. The National Safety Council reports 5,300 people died on the job in 2001, excluding Sept. 11. That’s up 6 percent from 2000. The leading cause of workplace deaths includes transportation incidents, assaults and violent acts, and contact with objects and equipment.

“Many people adopt the ‘It won’t happen to me’ attitude when it comes to something negative,” Gibson says. “The reality is workplace injuries do happen. And they won’t stop until employers and employees adopt safe attitudes.”

Source: Marketwire

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