Fatal work injuries totaled 36 in 2015 for Idaho, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Richard Holden noted that the number of work-related fatalities in Idaho was little changed from the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 62 in 1996 to a low of 19 in 2012. (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 Idaho, transportation incidents resulted in 22 fatal work injuries, accounting for 61 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from transportation incidents increased by four over the year.

Contact with objects and equipment was the second-most frequent fatal work event with six fatalities, the same count as the prior year. Exposure to harmful substances or environments resulted in four work-related deaths; there were no fatalities for this incident  in 2014.

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 was the second-most frequent type of event (17 percent), followed by contact with objects and equipment (15 percent).

Industry

The private agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting industry sector had the largest number of fatalities in Idaho with 11, little changed from the previous year. (See table 2.) Trasnportation incidents were the most frequent fatal event in the sector with seven worker deaths. Five of the fatally injured in this sector worked in animal production and aquaculture.

The private transportation and warehousing sector had four workplace fatalities, compared to eight the previous year. Truck transportation accounted for three of the fatal injuries in this industry.

Occupation

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations and transportation and material moving occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 11 and 6, respectively. (See table 3.) With seven work related deaths, agricultural workers were the majority of the fatalities in farming, fishing, and forestry occupations. Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers accounted for four fatalities among transportation and material moving workers.

Additional highlights:

• Men accounted for 94 percent of the work-related fatalities in Idaho, similar to the 93-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 65 percent of the fatalities for men in Idaho.
• White non-Hispanics accounted for 83 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 56 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2014, compared to 57 percent nationally.
• Of the 36 fatally-injured workers in Idaho, 75 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for both groups of workers 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 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 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, Idaho, 2014–15

Event or exposure (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	34	36	100
Transportation incidents	18	22	61
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	10	12	33
Roadway collision with other vehicle	3	6	17
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	--	4	11
Roadway noncollision incident	--	4	11
Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway	--	4	11
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	--	3	8
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	--	4	11
Contact with objects and equipment	6	6	17
Struck by object or equipment	4	5	14
Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport	--	3	8
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, Idaho, 2014–15

Industry (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	34	36	100
Private industry	31	34	94
Natural resources and mining	11	12	33
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	10	11	31
Crop production	3	4	11
Animal production and aquaculture	3	5	14
Cattle ranching and farming	3	3	8
Construction	6	3	8
Construction	6	3	8
Trade, transportation, and utilities	10	9	25
Transportation and warehousing	8	4	11
Truck transportation	5	3	8
Couriers and messengers	--	1	3
Local messengers and local delivery	--	1	3
Local messengers and local delivery	--	1	3
Food services and drinking places	--	1	3
Restaurants and other eating places	--	1	3
Restaurants and other eating places	--	1	3
Limited-service restaurants	--	1	3
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2012.
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, Idaho, 2014–15

Occupation (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	34	36	100
Food preparation and serving related occupations	--	1	3
Supervisors of food preparation and serving workers	--	1	3
First-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers	--	1	3
First-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers	--	1	3
Sales and related occupations	--	3	8
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations	6	11	31
Agricultural workers	4	7	19
Miscellaneous agricultural workers	4	7	19
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse	--	3	8
Farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animals	--	3	8
Construction and extraction occupations	8	4	11
Transportation and material moving occupations	9	6	17
Motor vehicle operators	8	5	14
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	7	5	14
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	7	4	11
Light truck or delivery services drivers	--	1	3
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, Idaho, 2014–15

Worker characteristics	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	34	36	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	25	27	75
Self-employed (2)	9	9	25
Gender
Men	33	34	94
Age (3)
25 to 34 years	4	6	17
35 to 44 years	5	7	19
45 to 54 years	8	7	19
55 to 64 years	9	6	17
65 years and over	4	4	11
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	27	30	83
Hispanic or Latino	5	5	14
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.