Fatal work injuries totaled 44 in 2015 for Nevada, 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 Nevada was higher than the 40 fatalities in the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 71 in 2007 to a low of 24 in 2009. (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 Nevada, transportation incidents resulted in 21 fatal work injuries, accounting for 48 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from transportation incidents rose by 11 over the year.

Falls, slips, or trips was the second-most frequent fatal work event with seven fatalities, followed by exposure to harmful substances or elements and contact with objects and equipment with six fatalites each. Work-related deaths in these three major categories were little changed from 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 construction industry sector had the largest number of fatalities in Nevada with nine compared to six in the previous year. (See table 2.) Falls, slips, or trips and contact with objects and equipment each accounted for three worker deaths in 2015. Two-thirds of those fatally injured in this sector worked in specialty trade contracting.

The private transportation and warehousing sector had seven workplace fatalities, up four from the previous year. Truck transportation accounted for 3 of the 7 fatal injuries in this industry.

Occupation

Transportation and material moving occupations and construction and extraction occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 12 and 11, respectively. (See table 3.) The majority of the fatalities within the transportation and material moving group were heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (7). Construction laborers accounted for 4 of the 11 fatalities among construction and extraction workers.

Additional highlights:

• Men accounted for 95 percent of the work-related fatalities in Nevada, similar to the 93-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 48 percent of the fatalities for men in Nevada.
• White non-Hispanics accounted for 59 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 57 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2015, matching the national share.
• Of the 44 fatally-injured workers in Nevada, 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 thanks the Nevada Department of Health 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, Nevada, 2014–15

Event or exposure (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	40	44	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	10	4	9
Intentional injury by person	9	4	9
Transportation incidents	10	21	48
Aircraft incidents	2	1	2
Other in-flight crash	2	1	2
Other in-flight crash into structure, object, or ground	1	1	2
Pedestrian vehicular incident	4	4	9
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	--	11	25
Roadway collision with other vehicle	--	5	11
Roadway collision--moving in opposite directions, oncoming	--	3	7
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	1	3	7
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	1	3	7
Roadway noncollision incident	--	3	7
Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway	--	3	7
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	--	4	9
Nonroadway collision with other vehicle	--	1	2
Nonroadway collision with object other than vehicle	--	1	2
Falls, slips, trips	6	7	16
Falls to lower level	5	3	7
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	6	6	14
Exposure to other harmful substances	6	4	9
Nonmedical use of drugs or alcohol--unintentional overdose	3	4	9
Contact with objects and equipment	7	6	14
Struck by object or equipment	4	3	7
Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects	3	1	2
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, Nevada, 2014–15

Industry (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	40	44	100
Private industry	34	40	91
Natural resources and mining	2	6	14
Mining (2)	2	4	9
Support activities for mining	--	1	2
Support activities for mining	--	1	2
Support activities for mining	--	1	2
Support activities for metal mining	--	1	2
Construction	6	9	20
Construction	6	9	20
Specialty trade contractors	--	6	14
Building equipment contractors	--	3	7
Other specialty trade contractors	--	3	7
Trade, transportation, and utilities	7	7	16
Transportation and warehousing	3	7	16
Truck transportation	--	3	7
Taxi service	1	1	2
Professional and business services	3	7	16
Administrative and waste services	3	7	16
Administrative and support services	3	7	16
Travel arrangement and reservation services	--	1	2
Tour operators	--	1	2
Investigation and security services	--	3	7
Services to buildings and dwellings	--	3	7
Educational and health services	--	3	7
Educational services	--	2	5
Educational services	--	2	5
Other schools and instruction	--	2	5
Sports and recreation instruction	--	1	2
All other schools and instruction	--	1	2
Automobile driving schools	--	1	2
Health care and social assistance	--	1	2
Nursing and residential care facilities	--	1	2
Residential intellectual and developmental disability, mental health, and substance abuse facilities	--	1	2
Residential mental health and substance abuse facilities	--	1	2
Leisure and hospitality	6	4	9
Government (3)	6	4	9
State government	--	1	2
Local government	4	1	2
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2012. (2) Includes fatal injuries at all establishments categorized as Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (Sector 21) in the North American Industry Classification System, 2012, including establishments not governed by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) rules and reporting, such as those in Oil and Gas Extraction. (3) 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, Nevada, 2014–15

Occupation (1)	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	40	44	100
Community and social services occupations	--	1	2
Counselors, social workers, and other community and social service specialists	--	1	2
Counselors	--	1	2
Substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors	--	1	2
Protective service occupations	4	3	7
Law enforcement workers	--	1	2
Police officers	--	1	2
Police and sheriff's patrol officers	--	1	2
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	--	4	9
Office and administrative support occupations	--	1	2
Material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers	--	1	2
Postal service workers	--	1	2
Postal service mail carriers	--	1	2
Construction and extraction occupations	5	11	25
Construction trades workers	3	6	14
Construction laborers	3	4	9
Construction laborers	3	4	9
Highway maintenance workers	--	1	2
Highway maintenance workers	--	1	2
Extraction workers	1	2	5
Mining machine operators	1	2	5
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	5	4	9
Other installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	5	3	7
Transportation and material moving occupations	7	12	27
Motor vehicle operators	5	11	25
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	4	8	18
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	4	7	16
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	1	3	7
Taxi drivers and chauffeurs	1	3	7
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, Nevada, 2014–15

Worker characteristics	2014	2015
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	40	44	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	34	33	75
Self-employed (2)	6	11	25
Gender
Men	37	42	95
Age (3)
20 to 24 years	--	1	2
25 to 34 years	8	10	23
35 to 44 years	6	7	16
45 to 54 years	10	8	18
55 to 64 years	12	15	34
65 years and over	4	3	7
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	26	26	59
Hispanic or Latino	8	13	30
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.