Fatal work injuries totaled 30 in 2016 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 lower than the 36 fatalities in 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 5,190 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2016, a 7-percent increase from the 4,836 fatal injuries in 2015, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. This was the third consecutive increase in annual workplace fatalities and the first time more than 5,000 fatalities have been recorded since 2008.

Type of incident

In Idaho, transportation incidents resulted in 18 fatal work injuries and contact with objects and equipment accounted for 7 fatalities. These two major categories accounted for 83 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from transportation incidents fell by four over the year.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2016, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. (See chart 2.) Violence and other injuries by persons or animals was the second-most common fatal event (17 percent), followed by falls, slips, or trips (16 percent).

Industry

The private agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting industry sector had the highest number of fatalities in Idaho with 9, compared to 11 in the previous year. (See table 2.) Transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal event in the sector with six worker deaths. Three of those fatally injured in this sector worked in crop production, and three worked in cattle ranching and farming.

The private construction sector had six workplace fatalities in 2016. Construction of buildings accounted for half of the fatalities in this industry.

Occupation

Transportation and material moving occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities with nine. (See table 3.) Six of these fatalities were heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers.

Additional highlights:

• Men accounted for 90 percent of the work-related fatalities in Idaho, compared to the 93-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 63 percent of the fatalities for men in Idaho.
• White non-Hispanics accounted for 80 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 50 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2016, compared to 57 percent nationwide.
• Of the 30 fatally-injured workers in Idaho, 73 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 (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 2016 national data, over 23,300 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 website at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/home.htm.

Federal/State agency coverage. The CFOI includes data for all fatal work injuries, even those that may be outside the scope of other agencies or 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. More on the scope of CFOI can be found at www.bls.gov/iif/cfoiscope.htm.

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, 2015–16

Event or exposure (1)	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	36	30	100
Transportation incidents	22	18	60
Pedestrian vehicular incident	--	3	10
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	12	11	37
Roadway collision with other vehicle	6	5	17
Roadway collision--moving in same direction	--	3	10
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	--	3	10
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	--	3	10
Roadway noncollision incident	4	3	10
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	3	3	10
Falls, slips, trips	--	4	13
Falls to lower level	--	4	13
Other fall to lower level	--	4	13
Contact with objects and equipment	6	7	23
Struck by object or equipment	5	3	10
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, 2015–16

Industry (1)	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	36	30	100
Private industry	34	28	93
Natural resources and mining	12	10	33
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	11	9	30
Crop production	4	3	10
Animal production and aquaculture	5	3	10
Cattle ranching and farming	3	3	10
Construction	3	6	20
Construction	3	6	20
Construction of buildings	--	3	10
Specialty trade contractors	--	1	3
Other specialty trade contractors	--	1	3
Site preparation contractors	--	1	3
Trade, transportation, and utilities	9	7	23
Transportation and warehousing	4	5	17
Truck transportation	3	5	17
General freight trucking	--	4	13
General freight trucking, long-distance	--	4	13
Professional and business services	--	3	10
Administrative and waste services	--	3	10
Educational and health services	--	1	3
Health care and social assistance	--	1	3
Ambulatory health care services	--	1	3
Offices of dentists	--	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, 2015–16

Occupation (1)	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	36	30	100
Management occupations	--	5	17
Other management occupations	--	5	17
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	--	3	10
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	--	3	10
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations	11	6	20
Agricultural workers	7	5	17
Miscellaneous agricultural workers	7	5	17
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse	3	3	10
Construction and extraction occupations	4	8	27
Construction trades workers	--	6	20
Construction laborers	--	4	13
Construction laborers	--	4	13
Transportation and material moving occupations	6	9	30
Motor vehicle operators	5	7	23
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	5	6	20
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	4	6	20
Footnotes: (1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010.
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 selected demographic characteristics, Idaho, 2015–16

Worker characteristics	2015	2016
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	36	30	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	27	22	73
Self-employed (2)	9	8	27
Gender
Men	34	27	90
Women	--	3	10
Age (3)
25 to 34 years	6	5	17
35 to 44 years	7	7	23
45 to 54 years	7	3	10
55 to 64 years	6	9	30
65 years and over	4	5	17
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	30	24	80
Black or African-American, non-Hispanic	--	--	--
Hispanic or Latino	5	6	20
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.