Fatal work injuries totaled 73 in 2012 for Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Sheila Watkins, the Bureau’s regional commissioner, noted that while the 2012 count was preliminary, the number of work-related fatalities in the Philadelphia metropolitan area increased by seven over the year. Fatal occupational injuries in the metropolitan area have ranged from a high of 93 in 2004 and 2007 to a low of 66 in 2011. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a preliminary total of 4,383 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2012, down from a revised count of 4,693 fatal work injuries in 2011, according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. Revised 2012 CFOI data will be released in the late Spring of 2014.

In 2012, the Philadelphia area had the sixth-largest population nationally and placed fifth in the number of work-related fatalities among the 10 largest metropolitan statistical areas in the United States. (See chart 2.) The most populated area in the country—New York—had the highest number of workplace fatalities (178) in 2012. The smallest of the 10 metropolitan areas—Boston—had the lowest fatality count with 15 deaths. (See chart 4.)

Of the 73 fatal work injuries reported in the Philadelphia metropolitan area in 2012, 25 resulted from transportation incidents; 13 of these were roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicles and 6 were pedestrian vehicular incidents. (See table 2.) Transportation incidents was the most frequent fatal event in 7 of the 10 largest metropolitan areas in 2012, including Philadelphia. (See table 1.) The Philadelphia area had the third-highest share of work-related deaths from transportation incidents (34 percent), led by Dallas (39 percent) and Los Angeles (36 percent). (Note that transportation counts presented are expected to rise when updated 2012 data are released in Spring 2014 because key source documentation detailing specific transportation-related incidents has not yet been received.)

Violence and other injuries by persons or animals was the second-most frequent cause of workplace deaths in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, responsible for 21 percent of total fatalities. Twelve of the 15 fatalities in this category were intentional injuries by other persons (homicides). Atlanta (32 percent), Chicago (28 percent), New York (28 percent), and Washington D.C. (22 percent) all had higher shares of workplace fatalities due to violence and other injuries by persons or animals.

Falls, slips, and trips was the third-most frequent fatal event in Philadelphia in 2012, resulting in 18 percent of all fatalities. Eight of these fatalities were a result of falls to a lower level and five were a result of falls on the same level. Philadelphia tied Dallas for the lowest share of total fatalities due to falls, slips, and trips.

In the United States, transportation incidents was also the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2012, accounting for 41 percent of fatal work injuries, higher than Philadelphia’s 34-percent share. (See chart 3.) Violence and other injuries was the second-most frequent type of event nationally, with 17 percent of work-related fatalities, lower than the share in Philadelphia. Contact with objects and equipment (16 percent) and falls, slips, and trips (15 percent) were the third- and fourth-most frequent events, respectively, in the nation.

 

Additional key characteristics in the Philadelphia area:

• The construction industry sector had the largest number of fatalities in the Philadelphia area in 2012 with 16, up from 6 the previous year. (See table 3.) Exposure to harmful substances or environments accounted for six of the worker deaths; five fatalities were due to falls, slips, and trips; four were due to transportation incidents.
• The transportation and warehousing industry and government tied for the second-highest fatality count with 10 each. Transportation incidents accounted for six worker deaths in transportation and warehousing, while three of the fatalities in government were due to violence and other injuries by persons or animals.
• Transportation and material moving occupations had the highest number of fatal work injuries with 17, followed by construction and extraction occupations with 16. (See table 4.)
• Men accounted for 66, or 90 percent of the work-related fatalities in the metropolitan area. (See table 5.) Transportation incidents made up 35 percent (23) of these fatalities. Nationally, men accounted for 92 percent of all fatalities.
• In Philadelphia, 53 percent of those who died from a workplace injury were white non-Hispanics. Nationwide, this group accounted for 68 percent of work-related deaths.
• Workers 25-54 years old—the prime working age group—accounted for 71 percent of the area’s work-related fatalities in 2012. Nationally, workers in this group accounted for 59 percent of on-the-job fatalities.
• Of the 73 people that suffered fatal work injuries in Philadelphia, 64, or 88 percent, worked for wages and salaries; the remaining were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for wage and salary workers was transportation incidents while violence and other injuries by persons or animals caused the most self-employed worker fatalities.
• Thirty percent (22) of work-related fatalities occurred after 8:00 p.m. and before 8:00 a.m. in Philadelphia in 2012. However, the hour with the most fatalities (eight) was 11:00 a.m. to 11:59 a.m.
• Fourteen workplace fatalities occurred on Wednesday in Philadelphia in 2012, followed by Monday and Friday with 13 fatalities each.
• In 2011, CFOI began identifying if a fatally-injured worker was working as a contractor and recording the industry of both the worker and the contracting firm. A contractor is defined as a worker employed by one firm but working at the behest of another firm that exercises overall responsibility for the operations at the site of the fatal injury. In 2012, the Philadelphia area had 12 fatally-injured workers identified as fitting the contractor criteria; 10 of these deaths occurred at private sector contracting firms and 2 at government operations.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Technical Note

Background of the program. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), part of the BLS Occupational Safety and Health Statistics (OSHS) program, compiles a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year. The CFOI program uses diverse state, federal, and independent data sources to identify, verify, and describe fatal work injuries. This assures counts are as complete and accurate as possible.

For technical information and definitions for the CFOI program, please go to the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS web site at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch9.pdf.

Federal/State agency coverage. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries includes data for all fatal work injuries, whether the decedent was working in a job covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) or other federal or state agencies or was outside the scope of regulatory coverage. Thus, any comparison between the BLS fatality census counts and those released by other agencies should take into account the different coverage requirements and definitions being used by each agency.

Acknowledgments. BLS thanks the Pennsylvania Department of Health; New Jersey Department of Health; Delaware Department of Labor; and Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation for their efforts in collecting accurate, comprehensive, and useful data on fatal work injuries. BLS also appreciates the efforts of all federal, state, local, and private sector entities that submitted source documents used to identify fatal work injuries. Among these agencies are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; the National Transportation Safety Board; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Mine Safety and Health Administration; the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (Federal Employees' Compensation and Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation divisions); the Federal Railroad Administration; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; state vital statistics registrars, coroners, and medical examiners; state departments of health, labor and industries, and workers' compensation agencies; state and local police departments; and state farm bureaus.

Area definitions. The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, dated December 2009. A detailed list of the geographic definitions is available at https://www.bls.gov/lau/lausmsa.htm.

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) consists of the Camden, N.J. Metropolitan Division (MD); the Philadelphia, Pa. Metropolitan Division (MD); and the Wilmington, Del.-Md.-N.J. Metropolitan Division (MD).

• The Camden, N.J. MD is composed of Burlington, Camden, and Gloucester Counties in New Jersey.
• The Philadelphia, Pa. MD consists of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania.
• The Wilmington, Del.-Md.-N.J. MD consists of New Castle County in Delaware, Cecil County in Maryland, and Salem County in New Jersey.

Table 1. Fatal occupational injuries by selected event groups in the 10 largest metropolitan areas in 2012(p)

Metropolitan Areas(1)	Total fatalities(2)	Transportation incidents	Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	Falls, slips, trips	Exposure to harmful substances or environments	Contact with objects and equipment
United States(3)	4,383	1,789	767	668	320	712
New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa.	178	49	50	38	14	22
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas	90	24	13	20	6	20
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif.	81	29	16	17	6	11
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, Ill.-Ind.-Wis.	81	20	23	16	8	8
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md.	73	25	15	13	9	9
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.Va.	68	21	15	16	8	8
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, Fla.	64	16	10	15	11	10
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, Texas	56	22	10	10	6	7
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Ga.	38	10	12	9	-	4
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, Mass.-N.H.	15	5	3	4	-	2
Footnotes: (1) Metropolitan areas used in this table are Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) based on definitions from the Office of Management and Budget Bulletin Number 10-02, December 2009. (2) Data are based on a preliminary total of 4,383 fatal work injuries for 2012. (3) Also includes fatalities occurring in nonmetropolitan areas. (p) Data for 2012 are preliminary.
Note: Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by event or exposure, Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, 2011-2012

Event or exposure(1)	2011(2)	2012(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	66	73	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	22	15	21
Intentional injury by person	22	14	19
Intentional injury by other person	16	12	16
Shooting by other person--intentional	12	10	14
Stabbing, cutting, slashing, piercing	2	2	3
Animal and insect related incidents	-	1	1
Bites and stings	-	1	1
Other animal bites, nonvenomous	-	1	1
Transportation incidents	18	25	34
Aircraft incidents	-	1	1
Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing	-	1	1
Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing--into structure, object, or ground	-	1	1
Animal and other non-motorized vehicle transportation incidents	1	1	1
Animal transportation incident	1	1	1
Thrown, fell, or jumped from animal being ridden	1	1	1
Pedestrian vehicular incident	3	6	8
Pedestrian struck by vehicle on side of road	-	2	3
Pedestrian struck by forward-moving vehicle on side of road	-	2	3
Roadway incident involving motorized land vehicle	13	13	18
Roadway collision with other vehicle	10	7	10
Roadway collision--moving in same direction	1	2	3
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	-	2	3
Roadway collision--moving and standing vehicle on side of roadway	1	1	1
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	2	6	8
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	-	6	8
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicle	-	4	5
Nonroadway noncollision incident	-	-	-
Fall or jump from and struck by same vehicle in normal operation, nonroadway	-	1	1
Fire or explosion	1	2	3
Fire	-	2	3
Collapsing building, structure, or structural element during fire	-	2	3
Falls, slips, trips	12	13	18
Falls on same level	3	5	7
Fall on same level due to slipping	-	1	1
Falls to lower level	9	8	11
Fall from collapsing structure or equipment	1	-	-
Fall from collapsing structure or equipment 6 to 10 feet	-	1	1
Other fall to lower level	8	6	8
Other fall to lower level 21 to 25 feet	-	1	1
Other fall to lower level more than 30 feet	3	3	4
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	-	9	12
Exposure to electricity	-	7	10
Direct exposure to electricity	-	2	3
Direct exposure to electricity, greater than 220 volts	-	2	3
Indirect exposure to electricity	-	5	7
Indirect exposure to electricity, greater than 220 volts	-	5	7
Contact with objects and equipment	11	9	12
Struck by object or equipment	10	6	8
Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport	3	-	-
Struck by other falling powered vehicle	-	1	1
Struck by rolling object or equipment--other than powered vehicle	-	2	3
Struck by falling object or equipment	6	2	3
Struck by object falling from vehicle or machinery--other than vehicle part	3	1	1
Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects	-	3	4
Caught in running equipment or machinery	-	3	4
Caught in running equipment or machinery during regular operation	-	1	1
Footnotes: (1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward. (2) Data for 2011 are revised and final. (p) Data for 2012 are preliminary. Revised and final 2012 data are scheduled to be released in Spring 2014.
NOTE: Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

 Table 3. Fatal occupational injuries by selected industry, Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, 2011-2012

Industry(1)	2011(2)	2012(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	66	73	100
Private industry	60	63	86
Natural resources and mining	1	3	4
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	1	3	4
Crop production	-	2	3
Fruit and tree nut farming	-	1	1
Greenhouse, nursery, and floriculture production	-	1	1
Support activities for agriculture and forestry	-	1	1
Support activities for animal production	-	1	1
Construction	6	16	22
Construction	6	16	22
Construction of buildings	-	1	1
Nonresidential building construction	-	1	1
Heavy and civil engineering construction	-	1	1
Utility system construction	-	1	1
Specialty trade contractors	3	14	19
Foundation, structure, and building exterior contractors	1	6	8
Building equipment contractors	-	3	4
Building finishing contractors	-	3	4
Manufacturing	6	4	5
Manufacturing	6	4	5
Nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing	-	1	1
Glass and glass product manufacturing	-	1	1
Trade, transportation, and utilities	26	18	25
Wholesale trade	-	3	4
Merchant wholesalers, durable goods	-	3	4
Retail trade	13	5	7
Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers	-	1	1
Building material and supplies dealers	-	1	1
Food and beverage stores	11	3	4
Grocery stores	11	3	4
General merchandise stores	-	1	1
Other general merchandise stores	-	1	1
Transportation and warehousing	10	10	14
Air transportation	-	1	1
Nonscheduled air transportation	-	1	1
Rail transportation	-	1	1
Truck transportation	4	4	5
Transit and ground passenger transportation	4	2	3
Taxi and limousine service	3	2	3
Real estate and rental and leasing	-	-	-
Real estate	-	1	1
Activities related to real estate	-	1	1
Professional and business services	9	5	7
Administrative and waste services	7	5	7
Administrative and support services	4	5	7
Services to buildings and dwellings	4	5	7
Education and health services	-	3	4
Leisure and hospitality	1	8	11
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	1	2	3
Performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries	1	2	3
Spectator sports	1	1	1
Promoters of performing arts, sports, and similar events	-	1	1
Accommodation and food services	-	6	8
Food services and drinking places	-	6	8
Limited-service eating places	-	1	1
Drinking places (alcoholic beverages)	-	1	1
Other services, except public administration	4	4	5
Personal and laundry services	-	-	-
Personal care services	-	1	1
Government(3)	6	10	14
Federal government	1	1	1
State government	-	1	1
Local government	5	8	11
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2007. Total may include other industries not shown. (2) Data for 2011 are revised and final. (3) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry. (p) Data for 2012 are preliminary. Revised and final 2012 data are scheduled to be released in Spring 2014.
NOTE: Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

 Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by selected occupation, Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, 2011-2012

Occupation(1)	2011(2)	2012(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	66	73	100
Management occupations	4	4	5
Other management occupations	-	4	5
Agricultural managers	-	1	1
Construction managers	-	1	1
Food service managers	-	1	1
Business and financial operations occupations	-	1	1
Business operations specialists	-	1	1
Meeting and convention planners	-	1	1
Community and social services occupations	-	-	-
Counselors, social workers, and other community and social service specialists	-	1	1
Miscellaneous community and social service specialists	-	1	1
Protective service occupations	2	6	8
First-line supervisors of protective service workers	1	1	1
First-line supervisors of fire fighting and prevention workers	-	1	1
Fire fighting and prevention workers	-	1	1
Firefighters	-	1	1
Law enforcement workers	1	4	5
Police officers	-	4	5
Food preparation and serving related occupations	1	3	4
Food and beverage serving workers	1	2	3
Bartenders	-	1	1
Fast food and counter workers	1	1	1
Other food preparation and serving related workers	-	1	1
Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers	-	1	1
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	4	6	8
Grounds maintenance workers	3	3	4
Personal care and service occupations	-	2	3
Animal care and service workers	-	1	1
Animal trainers	-	1	1
Personal appearance workers	-	1	1
Barbers and cosmetologists	-	1	1
Sales and related occupations	11	3	4
Supervisors of sales workers	7	1	1
First-line supervisors of sales workers	7	1	1
Retail sales workers	1	2	3
Cashiers	-	2	3
Office and administrative support occupations	5	-	-
Material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers	5	-	-
Postal service workers	-	1	1
Construction and extraction occupations	8	16	22
Supervisors of construction and extraction workers	-	3	4
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	-	3	4
Construction trades workers	6	11	15
Electricians	-	2	3
Other construction and related workers	-	2	3
Elevator installers and repairers	-	1	1
Highway maintenance workers	-	1	1
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	7	5	7
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics, installers, and repairers	3	4	5
Automotive technicians and repairers	-	3	4
Production occupations	6	3	4
Transportation and material moving occupations	13	17	23
Supervisors of transportation and material moving workers	2	1	1
First-line supervisors of transportation and material-moving machine and vehicle operators	1	1	1
Air transportation workers	-	1	1
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers	-	1	1
Motor vehicle operators	7	12	16
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	5	10	14
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	-	2	3
Rail transportation workers	-	1	1
Railroad conductors and yardmasters	-	1	1
Footnotes: (1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010. Total may include occupations not shown. (2) Data for 2011 are revised and final. (p) Data for 2012 are preliminary. Revised and final 2012 data are scheduled to be released in Spring 2014.
NOTE: Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 5. Fatal occupational injuries by worker characteristics, Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, 2011-2012

Worker characteristics	2011(1)	2012(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	66	73	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers(2)	52	64	88
Self-employed(3)	14	9	12
Gender
Men	60	66	90
Women	6	7	10
Age(4)
20 to 24 years	2	3	4
25 to 34 years	7	14	19
35 to 44 years	12	17	23
45 to 54 years	24	21	29
55 to 64 years	14	11	15
65 and over	6	7	10
Race or ethnic origin(5)
White (non-Hispanic)	39	39	53
Black or African-American (non-Hispanic)	9	16	22
Hispanic or Latino	11	13	18
Asian or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (non-Hispanic)	5	5	7
Footnotes: (1) Data for 2011 are revised and final. (2) May include volunteers and workers receiving other types of compensation. (3) Includes self-employed workers, owners of unincorporated businesses and farms, paid and unpaid family workers, and may include some owners of incorporated businesses or members of partnerships. (4) Information may not be available for all age groups. (5) Persons identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. The race categories shown exclude Hispanic and Latino workers. (p) Data for 2012 are preliminary. Revised and final 2012 data are scheduled to be released in Spring 2014.
NOTE: Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.