Fatal work injuries totaled 97 in 2015 for New Jersey, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Martin Kohli, the Bureau’s chief regional economist, noted that the number of work-related fatalities in New Jersey increased by 10 from the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 145 in 1993 to a low of 81 in 2010. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a total of 4,836 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2015, a slight increase from the 4,821 fatal injuries in 2014, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program.

 

 

Type of incident

In New Jersey, transportation incidents resulted in 37 fatal work injuries and falls, slips, or trips accounted for 24 fatalities. These two major categories accounted for 63 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from these two categories in 2015 was similar to the count in the previous year.

Violence and other injuries by persons or animals was the third-most frequent fatal work event with 18 fatalities, up from 11 in 2014. Contact with objects and equipment resulted in 11 work-related deaths, unchanged from the prior year.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2015, accounting for approximately 42 percent of fatal work injuries. (See chart 2.) Falls, slips, or trips were the second-most frequent type of event (17 percent), followed by contact with objects and equipment (15 percent).

 

 

Industry

The private construction industry sector had the largest number of fatalities in New Jersey with 22, similar to the count in the previous year. (See table 2.) Falls to a lower level accounted for 12 worker deaths in the construction sector. Ten of those fatally injured in this sector worked in specialty trade contracting.

The private transportation and warehousing sector had 19 workplace fatalities, similar to the count in the previous year. General freight trucking accounted for 11, or 58 percent, of the fatal injuries in this industry.

Occupation

Two occupational groups, transportation and material moving (33) and construction and extraction (21) accounted for the highest number of workplace fatalities. (See table 3.) Among transportation and material moving occupations, the largest number of fatalities involved motor vehicle operators (15). Construction trades workers accounted for 14 of the 21 fatalities among construction and extraction workers.

Contracted Workers

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 2015, New Jersey had 16 fatally-injured workers identified as fitting the contractor criteria, down from 19 in 2014.

Additional highlights:

• Men accounted for 98 percent of the work-related fatalities in New Jersey, compared to 93 percent nationwide. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 37 percent of the fatalities for men in New Jersey.
• White non-Hispanics accounted for 54 percent of those who died from a workplace injury. Nationwide, this group accounted for 67 percent of work-related deaths.
• Workers 55 years old and over accounted for 40 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2015, compared to 35 percent of on-the-job fatalities nationally.
• Of the 97 fatally-injured workers in New Jersey, 86 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. Transportation incidents accounted for the largest share of fatalities for wage and salary workers. Among self-employed workers, half of the fatal events were associated with violence and other injuries by persons or animals.

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 ensures counts are as complete and accurate as possible. For the 2015 data, over 21,400 unique source documents were reviewed as part of the data collection process. For technical information and definitions for CFOI, 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 New Jersey Department of Health 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 provided 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 industrial relations and workers' compensation agencies; state and local police departments; and state farm bureaus.

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.

Table 1. Fatal occupational injuries by event or exposure, New Jersey, 2014–15

Event or exposure (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	87	97	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	11	18	19
Intentional injury by person	9	18	19
Homicides (Intentional injury by other person)	5	13	13
Shooting by other person--intentional	5	10	10
Stabbing, cutting, slashing, piercing	--	2	2
Hitting, kicking, beating, shoving	--	1	1
Suicides (Self-inflicted injury--intentional)	4	5	5
Shooting--intentional self-harm	--	1	1
Hanging, strangulation, asphyxiation--intentional self-harm	4	3	3
Transportation incidents	36	37	38
Aircraft incidents	--	1	1
Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing	--	1	1
Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing--due to mechanical failure	--	1	1
Pedestrian vehicular incident	12	9	9
Pedestrian struck by vehicle in roadway	5	1	1
Pedestrian struck by vehicle backing up in roadway	--	1	1
Pedestrian struck by vehicle in nonroadway area	--	6	6
Pedestrian struck by forward-moving vehicle in nonroadway area	--	4	4
Water vehicle incidents	--	--	--
Capsized or sinking water vehicle	--	1	1
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	20	22	23
Roadway collision with other vehicle	13	7	7
Roadway collision--moving in same direction	5	5	5
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	--	1	1
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	4	10	10
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	4	7	7
Roadway noncollision incident	3	5	5
Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway	--	4	4
Fires and explosions	3	--	--
Falls, slips, trips	24	24	25
Falls on same level	5	4	4
Falls to lower level	19	19	20
Other fall to lower level	18	16	16
Other fall to lower level 6 to 10 feet	3	3	3
Other fall to lower level 11 to 15 feet	5	4	4
Other fall to lower level 16 to 20 feet	3	3	3
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	--	7	7
Exposure to electricity	--	1	1
Direct exposure to electricity	--	1	1
Direct exposure to electricity, greater than 220 volts	--	1	1
Exposure to other harmful substances	--	5	5
Nonmedical use of drugs or alcohol--unintentional overdose	--	5	5
Contact with objects and equipment	11	11	11
Struck by object or equipment	7	7	7
Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport	--	3	3
Struck by falling object or equipment--other than powered vehicle	4	3	3
Struck, caught, or crushed in collapsing structure, equipment, or material	4	3	3
Overexertion and bodily reaction	--	--	--
Footnotes: (1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward.
Note: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, New Jersey, 2014–15

Industry (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	87	97	100
Private industry	76	86	89
Natural resources and mining	--	4	4
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	--	3	3
Fishing, hunting and trapping	--	2	2
Fishing	--	2	2
Fishing	--	2	2
Shellfish fishing	--	1	1
Mining (2)	--	1	1
Support activities for mining	--	1	1
Support activities for mining	--	1	1
Support activities for mining	--	1	1
Support activities for oil and gas operations	--	1	1
Construction	23	22	23
Construction	23	22	23
Construction of buildings	4	8	8
Residential building construction	3	7	7
Residential building construction	3	7	7
New single-family housing construction (except for-sale builders)	--	3	3
Residential remodelers	--	4	4
Heavy and civil engineering construction	2	4	4
Land subdivision	--	1	1
Land subdivision	--	1	1
Specialty trade contractors	17	10	10
Foundation, structure, and building exterior contractors	6	6	6
Roofing contractors	3	3	3
Building finishing contractors	--	1	1
Painting and wall covering contractors	--	1	1
Nonresidential painting and wall covering contractors	--	1	1
Other specialty trade contractors	4	1	1
Site preparation contractors	4	1	1
Nonresidential site preparation contractors	--	1	1
Manufacturing	6	6	6
Manufacturing	6	6	6
Trade, transportation, and utilities	29	34	35
Wholesale trade	3	3	3
Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods	1	3	3
Retail trade	6	11	11
Building material and garden equipment and supplies dealers	1	1	1
Building material and supplies dealers	--	1	1
Food and beverage stores	--	6	6
Grocery stores	--	4	4
Supermarkets and other grocery (except convenience) stores	--	3	3
Convenience stores	--	1	1
Beer, wine, and liquor stores	--	2	2
Beer, wine, and liquor stores	--	2	2
Gasoline stations	1	3	3
Gasoline stations	1	3	3
Gasoline stations with convenience stores	1	1	1
Clothing and clothing accessories stores	--	1	1
Clothing stores	--	1	1
Men's clothing stores	--	1	1
Transportation and warehousing	20	19	20
Water transportation	--	--	--
Inland water transportation	--	1	1
Inland water transportation	--	1	1
Inland water freight transportation	--	1	1
Truck transportation	12	11	11
General freight trucking	9	9	9
General freight trucking, local	4	3	3
General freight trucking, long-distance	5	6	6
General freight trucking, long-distance, less than truckload	--	1	1
Specialized freight trucking	3	--	--
Specialized freight (except used goods) trucking, local	--	1	1
Transit and ground passenger transportation	5	4	4
Taxi and limousine service	3	4	4
Taxi service	--	4	4
Scenic and sightseeing transportation	--	1	1
Scenic and sightseeing transportation, land	--	1	1
Scenic and sightseeing transportation, land	--	1	1
Information	--	1	1
Information	--	1	1
Telecommunications	--	1	1
Wired telecommunications carriers	--	1	1
Wired telecommunications carriers	--	1	1
Financial activities	--	--	--
Professional and business services	11	10	10
Professional and technical services	3	--	--
Professional, scientific, and technical services	3	--	--
Management, scientific, and technical consulting services	--	1	1
Management consulting services	--	1	1
Process, physical distribution, and logistics consulting services	--	1	1
Administrative and waste services	8	8	8
Administrative and support services	6	5	5
Employment services	--	1	1
Temporary help services	--	1	1
Investigation and security services	--	--	--
Investigation, guard, and armored car services	--	--	--
Armored car services	--	1	1
Waste management and remediation services	--	3	3
Waste collection	1	3	3
Waste collection	1	3	3
Solid waste collection	--	3	3
Educational and health services	--	--	--
Educational services	--	1	1
Educational services	--	1	1
Technical and trade schools	--	1	1
Technical and trade schools	--	1	1
Flight training	--	1	1
Leisure and hospitality	--	4	4
Accommodation and food services	--	4	4
Other services, except public administration	2	3	3
Other services, except public administration	2	3	3
Repair and maintenance	1	--	--
Automotive repair and maintenance	1	--	--
Automotive body, paint, interior, and glass repair	--	1	1
Automotive body, paint, and interior repair and maintenance	--	1	1
Government (3)	11	11	11
Federal government	--	4	4
State government	--	--	--
Local government	9	5	5
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2012. (2) Includes fatal injuries at all establishments categorized as Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (Sector 21) in the North American Industry Classification System, 2012, including establishments not governed by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) rules and reporting, such as those in Oil and Gas Extraction. (3) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry.
Note: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 3. Fatal occupational injuries by occupation, New Jersey, 2014–15

Occupation (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	87	97	100
Management occupations	3	--	--
Business and financial operations occupations	--	--	--
Computer and mathematical occupations	--	--	--
Architecture and engineering occupations	--	--	--
Engineers	--	--	--
Civil engineers	--	1	1
Civil engineers	--	1	1
Life, physical, and social science occupations	--	--	--
Community and social services occupations	--	--	--
Legal occupations	--	--	--
Education, training, and library occupations	--	--	--
Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations	1	--	--
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations	--	--	--
Healthcare support occupations	--	--	--
Protective service occupations	6	6	6
Law enforcement workers	3	3	3
Detectives and criminal investigators	--	1	1
Detectives and criminal investigators	--	1	1
Food preparation and serving related occupations	--	--	--
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	7	4	4
Personal care and service occupations	--	--	--
Sales and related occupations	--	8	8
Supervisors of sales workers	1	2	2
First-line supervisors of sales workers	1	2	2
First-line supervisors of retail sales workers	1	2	2
Retail sales workers	--	6	6
Cashiers	--	6	6
Cashiers	--	6	6
Office and administrative support occupations	--	--	--
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations	--	4	4
Fishing and hunting workers	--	2	2
Fishers and related fishing workers	--	2	2
Fishers and related fishing workers	--	2	2
Construction and extraction occupations	22	21	22
Supervisors of construction and extraction workers	4	6	6
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	4	6	6
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	4	6	6
Construction trades workers	15	14	14
Construction laborers	5	5	5
Construction laborers	5	5	5
Electricians	--	1	1
Electricians	--	1	1
Painters and paperhangers	--	1	1
Painters, construction and maintenance	--	1	1
Roofers	3	4	4
Roofers	3	4	4
Other construction and related workers	--	1	1
Hazardous materials removal workers	--	1	1
Hazardous materials removal workers	--	1	1
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	--	8	8
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics, installers, and repairers	--	3	3
Automotive technicians and repairers	--	--	--
Automotive service technicians and mechanics	--	1	1
Heavy vehicle and mobile equipment service technicians and mechanics	--	1	1
Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines	--	1	1
Other installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	--	4	4
Line installers and repairers	--	--	--
Telecommunications line installers and repairers	--	1	1
Production occupations	3	--	--
Transportation and material moving occupations	34	33	34
Supervisors, transportation and material moving workers	4	4	4
First-line supervisors of transportation and material-moving machine and vehicle operators	--	3	3
First-line supervisors of transportation and material-moving machine and vehicle operators	--	3	3
Air transportation workers	--	1	1
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers	--	1	1
Commercial pilots	--	1	1
Motor vehicle operators	23	15	15
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	18	11	11
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	16	9	9
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	3	4	4
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	3	4	4
Rail transportation workers	--	1	1
Locomotive engineers and operators	--	1	1
Locomotive engineers	--	1	1
Water transportation workers	--	1	1
Ship and boat captains and operators	--	1	1
Captains, mates, and pilots of water vessels	--	1	1
Material moving workers	6	10	10
Laborers and material movers, hand	4	5	5
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	--	5	5
Refuse and recyclable material collectors	--	4	4
Refuse and recyclable material collectors	--	4	4
Footnotes: (1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010.
Note: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by worker characteristics, New Jersey, 2014–15

Worker characteristics	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	87	97	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	70	83	86
Self-employed (2)	17	14	14
Gender
Men	80	95	98
Women	7	--	--
Age (3)
20 to 24 years	9	5	5
25 to 34 years	11	13	13
35 to 44 years	16	19	20
45 to 54 years	21	21	22
55 to 64 years	19	29	30
65 years and over	11	10	10
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	42	52	54
Black or African-American, non-Hispanic	10	14	14
Hispanic or Latino	31	22	23
Asian, non-Hispanic	3	9	9
Footnotes: (1) May include volunteers and workers receiving other types of compensation. (2) 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. (3) Information may not be available for all age groups. (4) Persons identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. The race categories shown exclude Hispanic and Latino workers.
Note: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.