01/22/2026 News Release: Employer-Reported Workplace Injuries and Illnesses--2023-2024
For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Thursday, January 22, 2026 USDL-26-0101
Technical information: (202) 691-6170 • IIFSTAFF@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/iif
Media contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov
EMPLOYER-REPORTED WORKPLACE INJURIES AND ILLNESSES - 2023-2024
Private industry employers reported 2.5 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in 2024, down
3.1 percent from 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This is the lowest number of
employer-reported injuries and illnesses for this data series going back to 2003. The decrease in 2024
was driven by a 26.0-percent drop in illness cases to 148,000, in turn due to a 46.1-percent decrease in
respiratory illness cases to 54,000, the lowest number of cases for each series reported since 2019. (See
chart 2.) These estimates are from the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII).
(Charts 1 and 2 appear here in the printed release.)
Annual rates, 2024
In 2024, the incidence rate of total recordable cases (TRC) in private industry was 2.3 cases per 100 full-
time equivalent (FTE) workers, down from 2.4 cases in 2023. This was the lowest TRC rate for this data
series going back to 2003. Injuries occurred at a rate of 2.2 cases per 100 FTE workers. The incidence
rate of illnesses decreased in 2024 to 13.9 cases per 10,000 FTE workers, from 19.0 cases in 2023.
Respiratory illnesses occurred at a rate of 5.1 cases per 10,000 FTE workers in 2024, down from 9.5
cases in 2023.
Industry rates
The TRC incidence rate decreased in five industry sectors in 2024. The TRC rate in the information
sector decreased to 0.7 cases per 100 FTE workers in 2024, down from 1.0 cases in 2023. The TRC rate
in the health care and social assistance sector decreased to a rate of 3.4 cases per 100 FTE workers in
2024, down from 3.6 cases in 2023. The retail trade, manufacturing, and real estate and rental and
leasing sectors also saw decreases in their TRC rates in 2024. No industry sector had a TRC rate
increase in 2024.
Biennial Case Characteristics and Worker Demographics, 2023-2024
Over the 2-year 2023-2024 period, there were 1.8 million cases involving days away from work
(DAFW) in private industry, representing 61.5 percent of the total cases involving days away from
work, job restriction, or transfer (DART). These DAFW cases occurred at an annualized incidence rate
of 86.6 cases per 10,000 FTE workers and resulted in a median of 8 days away from work. Over the
same period, there were 1.1 million cases involving days of job transfer or restriction (DJTR), which
accounted for 38.5 percent of total DART cases and occurred at an annualized rate of 54.2 cases per
10,000 FTE workers. The median days of job transfer or restriction was 15 days over 2023-2024.
Event or Exposure
Over the 2-year 2023-2024 period, the highest number of DART cases were caused by overexertion,
repetitive motion, and bodily conditions at 946,290, followed by contact incidents with 860,050 cases.
Notably, 87.6 percent of the total exposure to harmful substances and environments cases (196,540 of
the 224,450 total DART cases) required at least one day away from work. (See chart 3.)
(Chart 3 appears here in the printed release.)
Nature - coronavirus - novel
COVID-19 cases are included in the nature code coronavirus – novel. In the 2023-2024 period, the
annualized DAFW incidence rate for coronavirus – novel was 5.6 cases per 10,000 FTE workers in
the private industry. Healthcare support occupations and healthcare practitioners and technical
occupations had the highest annualized incidence rates of coronavirus - novel cases among select
occupational groups, at 32.4 cases and 26.7 cases per 10,000 FTE workers in 2023-2024, respectively.
(See chart 4.)
(Chart 4 appears here in the printed release.)
___________________________________________________________________________________________________
| Revision of Classification System |
| The updated Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) was implemented |
| for this release of the 2023-2024 data. OIICS classifies the nature of injury or illness, part of |
| body, event or exposure, and source/secondary source. The updated OIICS includes for the |
| first time a specific nature category for novel coronavirus, which captures COVID-19 cases. |
| Refer to the additional information section for more information. |
|___________________________________________________________________________________________________|
Additional Information
This news release is the first of two releases from BLS covering occupational safety and health statistics
for the 2024 calendar year. The SOII presents estimates of counts and incidence rates of employer-
reported nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses by industry and type of case. A second release on
February 19, 2026, will provide results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) of all
fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year.
Cases involving days away from work, job transfer, or restriction (DART) are the sum of cases with
days away from work (DAFW) and cases involving only days of job transfer or restriction (DJTR). Days
away from work cases include those that resulted in days away from work, some of which may also
include days of job transfer or restriction. Days of job transfer or restriction cases include those that
result in only days of job transfer or restriction.
Published SOII estimates of incidence rates and counts by industry and case type are rounded. However,
significant changes described in this release are determined using unrounded data (see
www.bls.gov/iif/factsheets/effects-of-rounding-on-estimates.htm).
Incidence rates per 10,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers can be converted to rates per 100 workers
by moving the decimal point left, two places, and rounding to the nearest tenth. Data users are cautioned
to account for different levels of precision when analyzing estimates presented in this release.
The SOII relies on OSHA recordkeeping requirements, which mandate employers record certain work-
related injuries and illnesses on their OSHA 300 log.
BLS has generated estimates of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses for many industries as
defined in the 2017 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) manual. For additional
information on nonfatal injury and illness estimates, see www.bls.gov/iif/overview/soii-overview.htm
and www.bls.gov/opub/hom/soii/concepts.htm#north-american-industry-classification-system.
A list of major changes implemented in the comprehensive OIICS revision is available at
www.bls.gov/iif/definitions/oiics-version-3-major-changes.htm. This change resulted in a break in series
for 2023-2024 case and demographics data.
Data for mining operators in coal, metal, and nonmetal mining are provided to BLS by the Mine Safety
and Health Administration (MSHA), U.S. Department of Labor. Due to the unavailability of final total
year MSHA data, preliminary fourth quarter data was used for reference year 2024 estimates.
All comparison statements made in this news release are statistically significant at the 95 percent
confidence level. Additional background and methodological information regarding the BLS
occupational safety and health statistics program is in the BLS Handbook of Methods at
www.bls.gov/opub/hom/soii/home.htm. Nonfatal occupational injury and illness estimates by industry
and case type are available at www.bls.gov/web/osh.supp.toc.htm. Additional data from the SOII are
also available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/iif, from BLS staff at (202) 691-6170, or by email
at IIFSTAFF@bls.gov.
If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access
telecommunications relay services.
TABLE 1. Number of total recordable occupational injuries and illnesses and respiratory
illnesses, private industry, 2015-24 (thousands)
_______________________________________________________________________________________
| | | |
Year | Total cases(1) | Injuries | Illnesses | Respiratory illnesses
| | | |
_______|____________________|______________|_______________|___________________________
2015 | 2,905.9 | 2,765.3 | 140.5 | 12.1
2016 | 2,857.4 | 2,719.8 | 137.5 | 11.0
2017 | 2,811.5 | 2,685.1 | 126.4 | 10.4
2018 | 2,834.5 | 2,707.8 | 126.8 | 12.1
2019 | 2,814.0 | 2,686.8 | 127.2 | 10.8
2020 | 2,654.7 | 2,110.1 | 544.6 | 428.7
2021 | 2,607.9 | 2,242.7 | 365.2 | 269.6
2022 | 2,804.2 | 2,343.6 | 460.7 | 365.0
2023 | 2,569.0 | 2,368.9 | 200.1 | 100.2
2024 | 2,488.4 | 2,340.4 | 148.0 | 54.0
_______________________________________________________________________________________
(1) Excludes farms with fewer than 11 employees.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Survey of Occupational
Injuries and Illnesses, in cooperation with participating state agencies.
TABLE 2. Number, annualized incidence rate, and median days of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work, restricted activity, or
job transfer (DART), days away from work (DAFW), and days of restricted work activity, or job transfer (DJTR)(1) by selected event or exposure, private industry,
2023-24
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
| | |
| DAFW | DJTR | DART
|___________________________________|________________________________|____________________________________
Event or | | |
Exposure(2) | 2023-2024 | 2023-2024 | 2023-2024
|___________________________________|________________________________|____________________________________
| | | Median | | | Median | | | Median
| Count | Rate(3) | DAFW | Count | Rate(3) | DJTR | Count | Rate(3) | DART
______________________________________________________|___________|___________|___________|__________|__________|__________|___________|__________|_____________
| | | | | | | | |
All events or exposures | 1,834,600 | 86.6 | 8 | 1,148,510| 54.2 | 15 | 2,983,110 | 140.8 | 14
Transportation incidents | 91,690 | 4.3 | 16 | 29,640 | 1.4 | 17 | 121,330 | 5.7 | 21
Violent acts | 54,510 | 2.6 | 6 | 23,830 | 1.1 | 13 | 78,340 | 3.7 | 11
Contact incidents | 499,270 | 23.6 | 5 | 360,780 | 17.0 | 10 | 860,050 | 40.6 | 10
Falls, slips, trips | 479,480 | 22.6 | 13 | 242,240 | 11.4 | 18 | 721,720 | 34.1 | 20
Overexertion, repetitive motion, and bodily conditions| 492,140 | 23.2 | 14 | 454,150 | 21.4 | 21 | 946,290 | 44.7 | 24
Exposure to harmful substances or environments | 196,540 | 9.3 | 5 | 27,910 | 1.3 | 7 | 224,450 | 10.6 | 5
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
(1) Cases involving days away from work, restricted work activity, or job transfer (DART) are the sum of cases involving days away from work (DAFW) and cases with
restricted work activity or job transfer (DJTR). Days-away-from-work cases include those that resulted in days away from work, some of which may also include
days of job transfer or restriction. Days of job transfer or restriction includes cases involving only days of job transfer or restriction.
(2) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) version 3 implemented for 2023 data forward. For complete information on the OIICS
Version used in this year, see the OIICS manual page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/definitions/occupational-injuries-and-illnesses-classification-manual.htm.
(3) The incidence rates represent the number of injuries and illnesses per 10,000 full-time workers and were calculated as (N/EH) x 20,000,000, where N = number
of injuries and illnesses during the reference period; EH = total hours worked by all employees during the reference period; and 20,000,000 = base for 10,000
equivalent full-time workers (working 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year).
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, in cooperation with participating state agencies.
TABLE 3. Annualized incidence rate of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days
away from work (DAFW)(1) of coronavirus - novel(2) cases by select occupational groups, private
industry, 2023-24
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
| |
Occupational group(3) | Rate(4) |
| |
_______________________________________________________|_____________________________________________|
All occupations | 5.6 |
Healthcare support | 32.4 |
Healthcare practitioners and technical | 26.7 |
Personal care and service | 8.4 |
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance | 8.3 |
Community and social service | 6.9 |
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
(1) Days-away-from-work cases include those that result in days away from work with or without job transfer
or restriction.
(2) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) version 3 implemented
for 2023 data forward. For complete information on the OIICS Version used in this year, see the OIICS
manual page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/definitions/occupational-injuries-and-illnesses-classification-manual.htm.
(3) Data are coded using the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC). For more information on the version
of SOC used in this year, see our Handbook of Methods concepts page: https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/soii/concepts.htm.
(4) The incidence rates represent the number of injuries and illnesses per 10,000 full-time workers and were
calculated as (N/EH) x 20,000,000, where N = number of injuries and illnesses during the reference period;
EH = total hours worked by all employees during the reference period; and 20,000,000 = base for 10,000 equivalent
full-time workers (working 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year).
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, in
cooperation with participating state agencies.
United States Department of Labor
