Fatal work injuries totaled 60 in 2016 for Nebraska, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that the number of work-related fatalities in Nebraska increased from 50 in the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 83 in 1994 and 2002 to a low of 36 in 2005. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a total of 5,190 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2016, a 7-percent increase from the 4,836 fatal injuries in 2016, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. This was the third consecutive increase in annual workplace fatalities and the first time more than 5,000 fatalities have been recorded since 2008.

Type of incident

In Nebraska, transportation incidents resulted in 36 fatal work injuries, accounting for 60 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from transportation incidents increased by 13 over the year. Fatalities from contact with objects or equipment resulted in nine workplace deaths, a decrease of two from the previous year.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2016, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. (See chart 2.) Violence and other injuries by persons or animals was the second-most common fatal event (17 percent), followed by falls, slips, or trips (16 percent).

Industry

The private agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industry sector had the highest number of fatalities in Nebraska with 18, little changed from the previous year. (See table 2.) Transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal event in the agriculture sector with nine worker deaths, followed by contact with objects or equipment with four fatalities. Sixty-one percent of those fatally injured in this sector worked in crop production.

The private transportation and warehousing sector had eight workplace fatalities, unchanged from the previous year. Truck transportation accounted for all the fatal injuries in this industry.

Occupation

Transportation and material moving occupations and management occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 15 and 11, respectively. (See table 3.) Eleven of the fatalities within the transportation and material moving group were heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers. Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers accounted for the 11 fatalities in the management group.

Additional highlights

• Men accounted for 87 percent of the work-related fatalities in Nebraska, below the 93-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 60 percent of the fatalities for men in Nebraska.
• White non-Hispanics accounted for 90 percent of those who died from a workplace injury. Nationwide, this group accounted for 67 percent of work-related deaths.
• Workers 25-54 years old accounted for 38 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2016, compared to 57 percent of on-the-job fatalities nationally.
• Of the 60 fatally-injured workers in Nebraska, 75 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for both groups was transportation incidents.

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 2016 national data, over 23,300 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 website at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/home.htm.

Federal/State agency coverage. The CFOI includes data for all fatal work injuries, even those that may be outside the scope of other agencies or 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. More on the scope of CFOI can be found at www.bls.gov/iif/cfoiscope.htm.

Acknowledgments. BLS thanks the Nebraska Workers' Compensation Court 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, Nebraska, 2015–16

Event or exposure (1)	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	50	60	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	6	4	7
Intentional injury by person	3	3	5
Transportation incidents	23	36	60
Aircraft incidents	--	2	3
Other in-flight crash	--	2	3
Pedestrian vehicular incident	--	3	5
Pedestrian struck by vehicle in work zone	--	2	3
Pedestrian struck by forward-moving vehicle in work zone	--	2	3
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	19	22	37
Roadway collision with other vehicle	12	13	22
Roadway collision--moving in same direction	--	6	10
Roadway collision--moving in opposite directions, oncoming	4	4	7
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	5	3	5
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	1	3	5
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	1	3	5
Roadway noncollision incident	6	6	10
Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway	4	6	10
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	4	7	12
Nonroadway noncollision incident	4	6	10
Jack-knifed or overturned, nonroadway	3	5	8
Fires and explosions	4	2	3
Explosions	2	2	3
Explosion of nonpressurized vapors, gases, or liquids	2	2	3
Falls, slips, trips	4	6	10
Falls to lower level	4	5	8
Other fall to lower level	--	4	7
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	--	3	5
Contact with objects and equipment	11	9	15
Struck by object or equipment	7	4	7
Struck, caught, or crushed in collapsing structure, equipment, or material	3	3	5
Engulfment in other collapsing material	3	2	3
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, Nebraska, 2015–16

Industry (1)	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	50	60	100
Private industry	48	55	92
Natural resources and mining	18	18	30
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	17	18	30
Crop production	7	11	18
Animal production and aquaculture	10	6	10
Cattle ranching and farming	10	5	8
Beef cattle ranching and farming, including feedlots	8	5	8
Beef cattle ranching and farming	7	5	8
Construction	5	6	10
Construction	5	6	10
Construction of buildings	3	3	5
Nonresidential building construction	3	2	3
Specialty trade contractors	2	2	3
Trade, transportation, and utilities	11	15	25
Wholesale trade	2	4	7
Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods	1	3	5
Farm product raw material merchant wholesalers	1	3	5
Grain and field bean merchant wholesalers	--	3	5
Retail trade	1	3	5
Gasoline stations	--	2	3
Gasoline stations	--	2	3
Gasoline stations with convenience stores	--	2	3
Transportation and warehousing	8	8	13
Truck transportation	5	8	13
General freight trucking	3	6	10
General freight trucking, long-distance	2	5	8
General freight trucking, long-distance, truckload	2	5	8
Specialized freight trucking	--	2	3
Specialized freight (except used goods) trucking, long-distance	--	2	3
Financial activities	1	3	5
Real estate and rental and leasing	--	2	3
Professional and business services	4	4	7
Administrative and waste services	4	4	7
Administrative and support services	4	3	5
Services to buildings and dwellings	4	2	3
Educational and health services	1	2	3
Leisure and hospitality	3	3	5
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	1	2	3
Performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries	--	2	3
Spectator sports	--	2	3
Spectator sports	--	2	3
Other services, except public administration	1	2	3
Other services, except public administration	1	2	3
Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional, and similar organizations	--	2	3
Religious organizations	--	2	3
Government (2)	2	5	8
State government	--	2	3
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2012. (2) 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, Nebraska, 2015–16

Occupation (1)	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	50	60	100
Management occupations	13	11	18
Other management occupations	12	11	18
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	10	11	18
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	10	11	18
Community and social service occupations	--	--	--
Religious workers	--	2	3
Miscellaneous religious workers	--	2	3
Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations	--	3	5
Entertainers and performers, sports and related workers	--	2	3
Athletes, coaches, umpires, and related workers	--	2	3
Athletes and sports competitors	--	2	3
Protective service occupations	1	2	3
Other protective service workers	--	2	3
Miscellaneous protective service workers	--	2	3
Crossing guards	--	2	3
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	4	6	10
Building cleaning and pest control workers	--	2	3
Building cleaning workers	--	2	3
Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners	--	2	3
Grounds maintenance workers	--	3	5
Grounds maintenance workers	--	3	5
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers	--	3	5
Sales and related occupations	1	2	3
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations	7	4	7
Agricultural workers	7	4	7
Miscellaneous agricultural workers	7	4	7
Farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animals	4	4	7
Construction and extraction occupations	4	5	8
Construction trades workers	3	5	8
Construction laborers	3	2	3
Construction laborers	3	2	3
Construction equipment operators	--	2	3
Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators	--	2	3
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	2	5	8
Other installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	1	2	3
Maintenance and repair workers, general	1	2	3
Maintenance and repair workers, general	1	2	3
Transportation and material moving occupations	15	15	25
Air transportation workers	--	2	3
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers	--	2	3
Commercial pilots	--	2	3
Motor vehicle operators	8	11	18
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	8	11	18
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	6	11	18
Material moving workers	7	2	3
Footnotes: (1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010.
NOTE: 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 selected demographic characteristics, Nebraska, 2015–16

Worker characteristics	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	50	60	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	30	45	75
Self-employed (2)	20	15	25
Gender
Men	45	52	87
Women	5	8	13
Age (3)
20 to 24 years	--	4	7
25 to 34 years	7	9	15
35 to 44 years	8	8	13
45 to 54 years	5	6	10
55 to 64 years	14	15	25
65 years and over	16	17	28
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	44	54	90
Black or African-American, non-Hispanic	--	3	5
Hispanic or Latino	4	--	--
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.