Fatal work injuries totaled 64 in 2013 for Mississippi, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that while the 2013 count was preliminary, the number of work-related fatalities in Mississippi was close to the count for the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 128 in 1995 and 1999 to a low of 63 in 2011 and 2012. Over the last five years, the number of fatalities has remained below 70. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a preliminary total of 4,405 fatal work injuries was recorded in 2013, down from a final count of 4,628 fatal work injuries in 2012, according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. Final 2013 CFOI data will be released in spring 2015.

Of the 64 fatal work injuries reported in Mississippi in 2013, 32 resulted from transportation incidents, followed by falls, slips, and trips; and contact with objects and equipment (9 each); together these three major categories accounted for more than three quarters of all fatal work injuries. Other major event categories each reported less than 9 deaths. (See table 1.) Within transportation incidents, roadway incidents was the most frequent type of workplace fatality with 25 deaths; in fact, it accounted for nearly two-fifths of all on-the-job fatalities in the state. In the contact with objects and equipment category, four deaths occurred from being struck by an object or equipment. Falls to a lower level accounted for six deaths within the falls, slips, trips category. (Note that transportation counts presented in this release are expected to rise when updated 2013 data are released in spring 2015 because key source documentation detailing specific transportation-related incidents has not yet been received.)

In the United States, transportation incidents was also the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2013, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. Mississippi’s share of on-the-job fatalities due to this event was 50 percent. (See chart 2.) Violence and other injuries by persons or animals was the second most frequent type of event nationally with 17 percent of work-related fatalities, greater than the 13 percent share for this event in Mississippi. Contact with objects or equipment and falls, trips, and slips each accounted for 16 percent of the nation’s workplace fatalities.

 

Additional key characteristics:

• The trade, transportation, and utilities industry sector had the largest number of fatalities in the state with 24, up from 18 the previous year. (See table 2.) Transportation incidents accounted for 19 of the worker deaths. Government had the second highest fatality count with 13.
• Transportation and material moving occupations had the highest number of fatal work injuries with 25. (See table 3.) Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers accounted for 16 of these deaths. Workers in construction and extraction occupations and protective service occupations had the next highest fatal count with 8 each.
• Men accounted for 60, or 94 percent, of the work-related fatalities in the state. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up more than half of these fatalities.
• In Mississippi, 66 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 32, or 50 percent, of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2013. Nationally, workers in this group accounted for 60 percent of on-the-job fatalities.
• Of the 64 persons that suffered fatal work injuries in Mississippi, 81 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for wage and salary workers was transportation incidents.

Technical Note

Background of the program. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, part of the BLS occupational safety and health statistics program, compiles a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the United States during the calendar year. The 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 about the CFOI program, please go to the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS web site at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/soii/home.htm.

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. The Bureau of Labor Statistics appreciates the efforts of all federal, state, local, and private sector entities that submitted source documents used to identify fatal work injuries, in particular the Mississippi Department of Labor.

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, Mississippi, 2012-2013

Event or exposure(1)	2012(2)	2013(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	63	64	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	12	8	13
Intentional injury by person	11	8	13
Intentional injury by other person	9	6	9
Shooting by other person--intentional	7	5	8
Transportation incidents	24	32	50
Pedestrian vehicular incident	--	4	6
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	17	25	39
Roadway collision with other vehicle	11	13	20
Roadway collision--moving in same direction	6	6	9
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	--	3	5
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	--	5	8
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	--	5	8
Roadway noncollision incident	4	6	9
Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway	3	6	9
Fires and Explosions	--	3	5
Fires	--	3	5
Falls, slips, trips	7	9	14
Falls on same level	--	3	5
Falls to lower level	7	6	9
Other fall to lower level	6	3	5
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	4	3	5
Indirect exposure to electricity	--	1	2
Indirect exposure to electricity, 220 volts or less	--	1	2
Contact with objects and equipment	14	9	14
Struck by object or equipment	10	4	6
Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport	--	3	5
Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects	3	3	5
Caught in running equipment or machinery	3	3	5
Footnotes: (1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward. Total may include other events not shown. (2) Totals for 2012 are revised and final. (p) Data are preliminary. Revised and final 2013 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2015.
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.

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, Mississippi, 2012-2013

Industry(1)	2012(2)	2013(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	63	64	100
Private industry	61	51	80
Natural resources and mining	7	4	6
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	6	3	5
Construction	14	6	9
Highway, street, and bridge construction	5	1	2
Trade, transportation, and utilities	18	24	38
Wholesale trade	3	3	5
Retail trade	3	4	6
Transportation and warehousing	11	17	27
Truck transportation	9	14	22
General freight trucking	5	10	16
General freight trucking, local	3	4	6
General freight trucking, long-distance	--	6	9
General freight trucking, long-distance, truckload	--	5	8
Specialized freight trucking	4	4	6
Information	--	6	9
Professional and business services	7	4	6
Administrative and support services	6	3	5
Services to buildings and dwellings	5	3	5
Educational and health services	--	3	5
Government(3)	--	13	20
Local government	--	11	17
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2007. Total may include other industries not shown. (2) Totals for 2012 are revised and final. (p) Data are preliminary. Revised and final 2013 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2015. (3) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry.
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 occupation, Mississippi, 2012-2013

Occupation(1)	2012(2)	2013(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	63	64	100
Protective service occupations	--	8	13
Supervisors of protective service workers	--	3	5
Law enforcement workers	--	5	8
Police officers	--	4	6
Police and sheriff's patrol officers	--	4	6
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	6	4	6
Sales and related occupations	3	3	5
Construction and extraction occupations	9	8	13
Construction trades workers	6	6	9
Construction laborers	3	5	8
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	3	6	9
Transportation and material moving occupations	17	25	39
Motor vehicle operators	15	21	33
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	15	20	31
Driver/sales workers	--	3	5
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	15	16	25
Footnotes: (1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010. (2) Totals for 2012 are revised and final. (p) Data are preliminary. Revised and final 2013 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2015.
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 worker characteristics, Mississippi, 2012-2013

Worker characteristics	2012(1)	2013(p)
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	63	64	100
Employee status
Wage and salary(2)	43	52	81
Self-employed(3)	20	12	19
Gender
Men	-	4	6
Women	61	60	94
Age(4)
35 to 44 years	16	12	19
45 to 54 years	12	20	31
55 to 64 years	10	21	33
65 years and over	13	6	9
Race or ethnic origin(5)
White, non-Hispanic	38	42	66
Black or African-American, non-Hispanic	23	19	30
Footnotes: (1) Totals for 2012 are revised and final. (p) Data are preliminary. Revised and final 2013 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2015. (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.
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.