Fatal work injuries totaled 80 in 2019 for Minnesota, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that Minnesota's number of work-related fatalities was up from the previous year. (See chart 1.) Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 113 in 1993 to a low of 60 in 2011.

Nationwide, a total of 5,333 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2019, a 2-percent increase from the 5,250 in 2018, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. The 5,333 fatal occupational injuries in 2019 represents the largest annual number since 2007.

Fatal event or exposure

In Minnesota, transportation incidents resulted in 36 fatal work injuries and falls, slips, and trips, accounted for 15 fatalities. These two major categories accounted for 64 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) Worker deaths from transportation incidents were up from 26 over the year, and worker fatalities due to falls, slips, and trips were up from 12.

Contact with objects and equipment was the third-most frequent fatal work event with 14 fatalities, compared to 13 in the prior year. Exposure to harmful substances or environments resulted in eight work-related deaths compared to nine in 2018.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2019, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. (See chart 2.) Falls, slips, and trips was the second-most common fatal event (17 percent), followed by violence and other injuries by persons or animals (16 percent).

Industry

The private agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industry had the highest number of fatalities in Minnesota with 23. (See table 2.) Contact with objects and equipment resulted in 8 of the 23 fatalities in the industry. The crop production sector accounted for 14 of the 23 workplace fatalities in the agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industry.

The private transportation and warehousing industry had 13 workplace fatalities. The truck transportation sector accounted for 11, or 85 percent, of this industry's fatal injuries.

Occupation

The transportation and material moving occupational group had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 25. (See table 3.) Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers accounted for 14 of the 25 fatalities among transportation and material moving workers. The management occupational group had the second-highest number of workplace fatalities, with 17. The construction and extraction occupational group had nine fatalities, and farming, fishing, and forestry occupations had eight. Construction trades workers accounted for 7 of the 9 construction and extraction occupational fatalities. Agricultural workers accounted for 6 of the 8 work-related deaths within the farming, fishing, and forestry group.

Additional highlights

• Men accounted for 93 percent of the work-related fatalities in Minnesota, similar to the national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 46 percent of the fatalities for men in Minnesota.

• White non-Hispanics accounted for 90 percent of those who died from a workplace injury. Nationwide, this group accounted for 62 percent of work-related deaths.

• Workers 25-54 years old accounted for 46 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2019, compared to 55 percent of on-the-job fatalities nationally.

• Of the 80 fatal work injuries in Minnesota, 60 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for wage and salary workers and self-employed workers was transportation incidents.

Technical Note

Background of the program. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), part of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Safety and Health Statistics (OSHS) program, is a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year. The CFOI uses a variety of 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 2019 national data, over 25,100 unique source documents were reviewed as part of the data collection process. For technical information and definitions for the CFOI, see the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/home.htm and the CFOI definitions at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm.

Federal/State agency coverage. The CFOI includes data for all fatal work injuries, some of which may be outside the scope of other agencies or regulatory coverage. Comparisons between CFOI counts and those released by other agencies should account for the different coverage requirements and definitions used by each agency. For more information on the scope of CFOI, see www.bls.gov/iif/cfoiscope.htm and www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/concepts.htm.

Acknowledgments. BLS thanks the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry 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, Minnesota, 2018–19

Event or exposure (1)	2018	2019
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	75	80	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	12	7	9
Intentional injury by person	10	6	8
Intentional injury by other person	4	2	3
Shooting by other person--intentional	--	2	3
Self-inflicted injury--intentional	6	4	5
Cutting, stabbing--intentional self-harm	--	1	1
Animal and insect related incidents	--	1	1
Struck by animal	--	1	1
Trampled by or stepped on by animal	1	1	1
Transportation incidents	26	36	45
Aircraft incidents	--	6	8
Other in-flight crash	--	4	5
Other in-flight crash due to mechanical failure	--	3	4
Rail vehicle incidents	--	2	3
Collision between rail vehicle and another vehicle	--	2	3
Animal and other non-motorized vehicle transportation incidents	--	1	1
Animal transportation incident	--	1	1
Thrown, tipped, or fell from animal-drawn vehicle	--	1	1
Pedestrian vehicular incident	--	3	4
Pedestrian struck by vehicle in nonroadway area	--	3	4
Water vehicle incidents	--	3	4
Capsized or sinking water vehicle	--	1	1
Fall or jump from water vehicle	--	2	3
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	14	12	15
Roadway collision with other vehicle	11	9	11
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	3	6	8
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	7	9	11
Nonroadway noncollision incident	6	7	9
Fires and explosions	--	--	--
Falls, slips, trips	12	15	19
Falls to lower level	7	13	16
Fall through surface or existing opening	--	1	1
Fall through surface or existing opening 16 to 20 feet	--	1	1
Other fall to lower level	5	12	15
Other fall to lower level 16 to 20 feet	--	1	1
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	9	8	10
Contact with objects and equipment	13	14	18
Struck by object or equipment	9	10	13
Struck by falling object or equipment--other than powered vehicle	4	5	6
Struck, caught, or crushed in collapsing structure, equipment, or material	--	2	3
Engulfment in other collapsing material	--	2	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. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, Minnesota, 2019

Industry (1)	Number	Percent
Total	80	100
Private industry (2)	75	94
Goods producing	--	--
Natural resources and mining	24	30
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	23	29
Crop production	14	18
Oilseed and grain farming	11	14
Corn farming	8	10
Animal production and aquaculture	9	11
Cattle ranching and farming	6	8
Beef cattle ranching and farming, including feedlots	2	3
Beef cattle ranching and farming	2	3
Dairy cattle and milk production	4	5
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (3)	1	1
Mining (except oil and gas)	1	1
Metal ore mining	1	1
Iron ore mining	1	1
Construction	11	14
Construction	11	14
Heavy and civil engineering construction	1	1
Other heavy and civil engineering construction	1	1
Service providing (4)	--	--
Trade, transportation, and utilities	--	--
Wholesale trade	2	3
Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods	2	3
Grocery and related product merchant wholesalers	1	1
General line grocery merchant wholesalers	1	1
Farm product raw material merchant wholesalers	1	1
Grain and field bean merchant wholesalers	1	1
Retail trade	1	1
Motor vehicle and parts dealers	1	1
Automotive parts, accessories, and tire stores	1	1
Automotive parts and accessories stores	1	1
Transportation and warehousing	13	16
Truck transportation	11	14
General freight trucking	6	8
General freight trucking, long-distance	4	5
General freight trucking, long-distance, truckload	4	5
Specialized freight trucking	5	6
Specialized freight (except used goods) trucking, long-distance	3	4
Financial activities	1	1
Real estate and rental and leasing	1	1
Real estate	1	1
Offices of real estate agents and brokers	1	1
Offices of real estate agents and brokers	1	1
Professional and business services	--	--
Educational and health services	5	6
Health care and social assistance	5	6
Leisure and hospitality	--	--
Other services, except public administration	--	--
Government (5)	5	6
Federal government	3	4
State government	1	1
Local government	--	--
Footnotes: (1) CFOI has used several versions of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) since 2003 to define industry. For complete information on the version of NAICS used in this year, see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. (2) Cases where ownership is unknown are included in private industry counts. (3) Includes fatal injuries at all establishments categorized as Mining (Sector 21) in the North American Industry Classification System, including establishments not governed by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) rules and reporting, such as those in oil and gas extraction. (4) Cases where industry is unknown are included in the service sector counts. (5) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry. Cases classified as foreign government and other government are included in all government counts, but not displayed separately.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 3. Fatal occupational injuries by occupation, Minnesota, 2019

Occupation (1)	Number	Percent
Total	80	100
Management occupations	17	21
Other management occupations	17	21
Business and financial operations occupations	--	--
Computer and mathematical occupations	--	--
Architecture and engineering occupations	--	--
Life, physical, and social science occupations	--	--
Community and social service occupations	--	--
Legal occupations	--	--
Educational instruction and library occupations	--	--
Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations	--	--
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations	--	--
Healthcare support occupations	--	--
Protective service occupations	--	--
Food preparation and serving related occupations	--	--
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	4	5
Supervisors of building and grounds cleaning and maintenance workers	1	1
First-line supervisors of building and grounds cleaning and maintenance workers	1	1
First-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers	1	1
Grounds maintenance workers	3	4
Grounds maintenance workers	3	4
Personal care and service occupations	--	--
Sales and related occupations	--	--
Office and administrative support occupations	--	--
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations	8	10
Agricultural workers	6	8
Miscellaneous agricultural workers	6	8
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse	4	5
Construction and extraction occupations	9	11
Construction trades workers	7	9
Construction equipment operators	1	1
Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators	1	1
Roofers	1	1
Roofers	1	1
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	4	5
Supervisors of installation, maintenance, and repair workers	1	1
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers	1	1
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers	1	1
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics, installers, and repairers	1	1
Bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists	1	1
Bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists	1	1
Production occupations	3	4
Transportation and material moving occupations	25	31
Motor vehicle operators	16	20
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	16	20
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	14	18
Material moving workers	6	8
Laborers and material movers	3	4
Military specific occupations (2)	3	4
Footnotes: (1) CFOI has used several versions of the Standard Occupation Classification (SOC) system since 2003 to define occupation. For complete information on the version of SOC used in this year, see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Cases where occupation is unknown are included in the total. (2) Includes fatal injuries to persons identified as resident armed forces regardless of individual occupation listed.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by selected demographic characteristics, Minnesota, 2018–19

Worker characteristics	2018	2019
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	75	80	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	55	48	60
Self-employed (2)	20	32	40
Gender
Men	67	74	93
Women	8	6	8
Age (3)
Under 16 years	--	2	3
18 to 19 years	3	2	3
25 to 34 years	15	16	20
35 to 44 years	9	13	16
45 to 54 years	12	8	10
55 to 64 years	11	21	26
65 years and over	22	17	21
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	63	72	90
Black or African-American, non-Hispanic	3	--	--
Hispanic or Latino	--	--	--
Footnotes: (1) May include volunteers and workers receiving other types of compensation. Cases where employment status is unknown are included in the counts of wage and salary workers. (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 data for Hispanics and Latinos. Cases where ethnicity is unknown are included in counts of non-Hispanic workers.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.