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News Release Information

15-1911-ATL
Thursday, December 03, 2015

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (404) 893-4220

Fatal Work Injuries in North Carolina – 2014

Fatal work injuries totaled 128 in 2014 for North Carolina, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that while the 2014 count was preliminary, the number of work-related fatalities in North Carolina increased by 19 over the year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 234 in 2000 to a low of 109 in 2013. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a preliminary total of 4,679 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2014, up from a revised count of 4,585 fatalities in 2013, according to results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. Final 2014 CFOI data will be released in the late spring of 2016.

 Chart 1. Total fatal occupational injuries, North Carolina, 2005–2014

Of the 128 fatal work injuries reported in North Carolina in 2014, 46 resulted from transportation incidents and 24 from falls, slips, and trips. Together these two major categories accounted for over one-half of all fatal work injuries reported in the state. (See table 1.) Other major event categories each reported 18 or fewer deaths. Within transportation incidents, roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicles was the most frequent type of workplace fatality with 23 deaths. This category accounted for nearly 18 percent of all on-the-job fatalities in the state. In the falls, slips, and trips category, 22 of the 24 deaths occurred as a result of falls to lower level. (Note that roadway counts presented in this release are expected to rise when updated 2014 data are released in the late spring of 2016 because key source documentation detailing specific transportation-related incidents has not yet been received.)

In the United States, transportation incidents were also the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2014, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. In North Carolina, transportation incidents accounted for 36 percent of the state’s share of fatalities. (See chart 2.) Falls, slips, and trips was the second most frequent type of event nationally, with 17 percent of work-related fatalities; the share in North Carolina was 19 percent. Violence and other injuries by persons or animals accounted for 16 percent of the nation’s workplace fatalities, while in the state, this event was responsible for 13 percent of workplace fatalities. Contact with objects and equipment was responsible for 15 percent of work-related fatalities nationwide; this event accounted for 14 percent of the state’s fatalities.

 Chart 2. Fatal occupational injuries by selected event, North Carolina and the United States, 2014
Additional highlights:
  • The construction industry had the largest number of fatalities in the state with 35, compared to 21 the previous year. Falls, slips, and trips accounted for 14 fatal work injuries in this industry. (See table 2.)
  • Trade, transportation, and utilities had the second highest fatality count with 29, followed by government with 20 worker deaths. Transportation incidents accounted for the largest number of deaths in each of these industries.
  • Transportation and material moving occupations had the highest number of fatal work injuries with 31. Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers suffered 17 of those deaths. (See table 3.)
  • Men accounted for 121, or 95 percent, of the work-related fatalities in the state. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 36 percent of these fatalities.
  • In North Carolina, 63 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 75, or 59 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2014. Nationally, workers in this group accounted for 58 percent of on-the-job fatalities.
  • Of the 128 fatal work injuries in North Carolina, 83 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for wage and salary workers was transportation incidents. Falls, slips, and trips were the most frequent fatal events for self-employed workers.

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/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. 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 North Carolina 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, North Carolina, 2013–14
Event or exposure(1) 2013(2) 2014(p)
Number Number Percent

Total

109 128 100

Violence and other injuries by persons or animals

20 16 13

Intentional injury by person

17 15 12

Homicides (Intentional injury by other person)

9 9 7

Shooting by other person--intentional

6 6 5

Suicides (Self-inflicted injury--intentional)

8 6 5

Hanging, strangulation, asphyxiation--intentional self-harm

-- 3 2

Injury by person--unintentional or intent unknown

3 1 1

Transportation incidents

46 46 36

Aircraft incidents

-- 3 2

Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing

-- 1 1

Pedestrian vehicular incident

4 12 9

Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle

30 23 18

Roadway collision with other vehicle

13 4 3

Roadway collision with object other than vehicle

15 18 14

Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway

15 18 14

Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles

8 8 6

Nonroadway noncollision incident

7 5 4

Jack-knifed or overturned, nonroadway

7 3 2

Fires and explosions

-- 6 5

Falls, slips, trips

11 24 19

Falls to lower level

10 22 17

Other fall to lower level

7 12 9

Exposure to harmful substances or environments

7 18 14

Exposure to electricity

4 4 3

Exposure to other hamrful substances

-- 11 9

Contact with objects and equipment

23 18 14

Struck by object or equipment

17 10 8

Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport

4 4 3

Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects

4 4 3

Caught in running equipment or machinery

4 3 2

Footnotes:
(1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward.
(2) Totals for 2013 are revised and final.
(p) Data for 2014 are preliminary. Revised and final 2014 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2016.

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 guidelines.

 

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, North Carolina, 2013–14
Industry(1) 2013(2) 2014(p)
Number Number Percent

Total

109 128 100

Private industry

96 108 84

Natural resources and mining

18 13 10

Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting

18 12 9

Crop production

6 4 3

Forestry and logging

5 3 2

Construction

21 35 27

Construction of buildings

4 4 3

Heavy and civil engineering construction

3 4 3

Specialty trade contractors

14 26 20

Manufacturing

5 11 9

Food manufacturing

-- 3 2

Trade, transportation, and utilities

26 29 23

Wholesale trade

5 4 3

Merchant wholesalers, durable goods

5 3 2

Retail trade

8 8 6

Transportation and warehousing

13 17 13

Air transportation

-- 1 1

Truck transportation

9 10 8

Support activities for transportation

-- 3 2

Information

-- 1 1

Financial activities

3 3 2

Finance and insurance

-- 1 1

Real estate and rental and leasing

3 2 2

Professional and Business Services

9 8 6

Administrative and waste services

6 8 6

Educational and health services

-- 4 3

Healthcare and social assistance

-- 4 3

Lesiure and hospitality

7 3 2

Arts, entertainment, and recreation

-- 2 2

Accommodation and food services

5 1 1

Other services, except public administration

6 1 1

Government(3)

13 20 16

Federal government

5 9 7

Local government

7 9 7

Footnotes:
(1) Industry data for 2013 are based on the North American Classification System, 2007. Industry data for 2014 are based on the North American Classification System, 2012.
(2) Totals for 2013 are revised and final.
(p) Data for 2014 are preliminary. Revised and final 2014 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2016.
(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. 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, North Carolina, 2013–14
Occupation(1) 2013(2) 2014(p)
Number Number Percent

Total

109 128 100

Management occupations

13 6 5

Other management occupations

11 5 4

Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers

7 4 3

Arts, desing, entertainment, sports, and media occupations

1 1 1

Protective service occupations

6 8 6

Fire fighting and prevention workers

-- 4 3

Firefighters

-- 3 2

Law enforcement workers

-- 4 3

Police officers

-- 4 3

Law enforcement workers

-- 4 3

Police officers

-- 4 3

Police and sheriff's patrol officers

-- 4 3

Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations

9 6 5

Personal care and service occupations

-- 1 1

Sales and related occupations

5 8 6

Supervisors of sales workers

3 4 3

First-line supervisors of sales workers

3 4 3

First-line supervisors of retail sales workers

-- 4 3

Retail sales workers

-- 3 2

Cashiers

-- 3 2

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations

11 8 6

Agricultural workers

3 5 4

Construction and extraction occupations

20 29 23

Construction trades workers

18 26 20

Carpenters

3 1 1

Construction laborers

6 7 5

Roofers

3 9 7

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations

7 12 9

Other installation, maintenance, and repair occupations

3 7 5

Production Occupations

4 6 5

Transportation and material moving occupations

21 31 24

Air transportation workers

-- 1 1

Aircraft pilots and flight engineers

-- 1 1

Motor vehicle operators

17 22 17

Bus drivers

-- 1 1

Driver/sales workers and truck drivers

16 18 14

Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers

12 17 13

Material moving workers

-- 7 5

Military occupations(3)

4 8 6

Footnotes:
(1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010.
(2) Totals for 2013 are revised and final.
(p) Data for 2014 are preliminary. Revised and final 2014 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2016.
(3) Includes fatal injuries to persons identified as resident armed forces regardless of individual occupation listed.

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 worker characteristics, North Carolina, 2013–14
Worker characteristics 2013(1) 2014(p)
Number Number Percent

Total

109 128 100

Employee status

 

Wage and salary(2)

83 106 83

Self-employed(3)

26 22 17

Gender

 

Men

100 121 95

Women

9 7 5

Age(4)

 

20 to 24 years

7 14 11

25 to 34 years

12 16 13

35 to 44 years

20 23 18

45 to 54 years

26 36 28

55 to 64 years

25 26 20

65 years and over

17 13 10

Race or ethnic origin(5)

 

White, non-Hispanic

77 81 63

Black or African-American, non-Hispanic

13 24 19

Hispanic or Latino

16 18 14

Footnotes:
(1) Totals for 2013 are revised and final.
(p) Data for 2014 are preliminary. Revised and final 2014 data are scheduled to be released in spring 2016.
(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.

 

Last Modified Date: Thursday, December 03, 2015