Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997 32

Homicide was the second

leading cause of workplace

fatality in the United States

in 1994, accounting for 1,071

victims or 16 percent of all jobrelated deaths during the year. It

was the leading cause of death for

women, blacks, Hispanics, Asians

and Pacific Islanders, 18- and 19-

year-olds, the self-employed, sales

supervisors, police, taxi drivers,

guards, and cashiers.1 It was the

third leading cause of job-related

death in the United States throughout the 1980s,2

 moving to second

place in the 1990s.3, 4 This upward

trend appears to indicate that

homicide on the job is becoming

ever more problematical.

While interest in this public

health issue has been growing,

research on occupational homicide is

still limited. Most studies have

analyzed data for only a few years,

ignoring long-term trends. Moreover, many studies included only

cases identified through death

certificates. Because many workrelated deaths may not be recorded

as such on the death certificate, this

method underestimates mortality

rates.5

Colorado has been collecting data

on workplace fatalities since 1982

using multiple sources of information to identify cases. This procedure provides more accurate estimates of population-based fatality

rates and, along with the history of

data collection, presents a good

opportunity to evaluate trends over

time.

The Colorado experience

There were 1,457 fatal occupational injuries identified in Colorado

(excluding suicides) from 1982

through 1994. Of these, 135 or 9

percent were homicides. The only

specific events to cause more deaths

in the workplace than homicides

were highway incidents at 401 and

air transportation incidents at 169.

On average, there were 10 homicides

per year. The 13-year average

annual crude rate of occupational

homicide was 0.63 per 100,000

workers.

There were no significant trends

in homicide data for Colorado from

1982 through 1994. There was,

however, a significant decrease in

the number of workplace deaths due

to all other injuries as well as a

significant decrease over time in the

rate of these workplace deaths (chart

1). This decrease in other injury

deaths may be underestimated due to

the more inclusive case certification

criteria used in the later years.

BY KATE MALONEY VASSALLO,

A. JAMES RUTTENBER, CAROL

J. GARRETT, AND WILLIAM M.

MARINE

Homicides in Colorado

Workplaces, 1982-94

There were 1,457 occupational fatalities in Colorado from 1982

through 1994. A major public health issue, homicide accounted

for 135 of these deaths and, although the rate of other fatal

occupational injuries decreased over the period, the homicide rate

remained constant. Many of the homicides occurred at night, in

public buildings, and were caused by guns.

Kate Maloney Vassallo holds a Master of Science degree in Public Health; A. James

Ruttenber is Associate Professor, Department of

Preventive Medicine and Biometrics, University

of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver,

Colorado; Carol J. Garrett is Chief, Health Statistics Section, Colorado Department of Public

Health and Environment, Denver, Colorado; and

William M. Marine is Professor, Department of

Preventive Medicine and Biometrics, University

of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver,

Colorado.
33 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997

Demographics. Men accounted for

77 percent of all homicide victims,

significantly lower than the proportion of men who died from other

injury fatalities (table 1). For

workers who died from an occupational injury, the risk of dying from

homicide was three times higher for

women than for men. However, the

risk of dying from homicide was

higher for men than for women

when adjusted for occupations in

services and sales and also when

adjusted for employment in the retail

industry. The 13-year average

annual rate of homicide per 100,000

workers was 0.90 for men and 0.32

for women (table 2).

Whites accounted for 93 percent

or 124 of the homicide victims and

blacks for 7 percent or 9 homicides.

This was significantly different than

their proportions of other fatal

occupational injuries (table 1). But,

for blacks, the rate of homicides was

nearly twice the white rate, but the

difference was not statistically

significant (table 2).

The proportion of homicide

victims over the 13-year period who

were Hispanic was 7 percent or 9,

which was not significantly different

from the proportion of victims of

other fatal occupational injuries who

were Hispanic (table 1). The 13-year

fatality rate due to homicide for

Hispanics was 0.48 per 100,000

workers, compared with 0.65 for

non-Hispanics (table 2).

The greatest proportion of

homicide victims fell in the 25- to

34-year-old age group (table 1),

accounting for 25 percent or 34 of

the homicide victims. Among all

other occupational fatalities, 31

percent, or 411, were in this age

bracket. In the 45- to 54-year-old

age group, a greater proportion of

workers died from homicide (24

percent or 32) than from other

injuries (14 percent, 204). There

were no homicides in workers under

the age of 16, and five in workers

over the age of 65.6

The proportion of foreign born

homicide victims was significantly

higher than the proportion of victims

of other injuries who were foreign

born (table 1). For workers who

died from occupational injuries, the

risk of dying from homicide was

twice as high for workers who were

born in a foreign country.

Homicide victims were more

likely to die on the job in an urban

county (84 percent, or 113) than

those who died from other injuries

(52 percent, 679). (See table 1.) For

fatally injured workers, the risk of

dying from homicide was four times

higher for workers who were injured

in an urban county.

Occupation. The greatest proportion

of workplace homicides (30 percent,

or 41) occurred in service occupations (table 3). This was significantly higher than the proportion of

other injury victims who worked in

services when compared to all other

occupational groups combined.

Sales occupations accounted for 22

percent (30) of all workplace

homicides, significantly higher than

Chart 1. Rates per 100,000 workers of homicides and other fatal occupational injuries by year, Colorado,

1982-94.

Rate per 100,000 workers

u = Fatal occupational injury rate

l = Workplace homicide rate

Year

1982 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14
 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997 34

Table 1. Demographic characteristics for victims of workplace homicide and other fatal occupational injuries, Colorado, 1982-941

Occupational homicides All other fatal occupational injuries

Number Percent Number Percent

Total ...................................................................... 135 100 1,322 100

Male ..................................................................... 104 77 1,234 93 <0.01

Female ................................................................. 31 23 88 7

White .................................................................... 124 93 1,268 97 <0.05

Black .................................................................... 9 7 40 3

Other/unknown ..................................................... 2 1 14 1

Non-Hispanic ........................................................ 126 93 1,201 91 n.s.

Hispanic ............................................................... 9 7 118 9

Unknown .............................................................. 0030

Less than 16 years old ......................................... 0040 (2)

16-19 .................................................................... 7 5 50 4

20-24 .................................................................... 11 8 151 11

25-34 .................................................................... 34 25 411 31

35-44 .................................................................... 30 22 294 22

45-54 .................................................................... 32 24 204 14

55-64 .................................................................... 16 12 135 10

65+ ....................................................................... 5 4 73 6

Unknown .............................................................. 0000

Birth in U.S.A. ....................................................... 121 90 1,255 95 <0.05

Birth in other country ............................................ 13 10 60 5

Unknown .............................................................. 1171

MSA location ........................................................ 113 84 679 52 <0.01

Non-MSA location ................................................ 21 16 639 48

Unknown .............................................................. 1140

Table 2. Workplace homicides stratified by sex, race, and ethnicity, Colorado, 1982-94

Average number Average annual Average annual

Demographic characteristic of homicides workforce rate per

per year (in thousands) 100,000

Total ................................................ 135 10 1,636 0.63 0.30-1.16

Male ............................................... 104 8 885 0.90 0.39-1.77

Female ........................................... 31 2 751 0.32 0.04-1.16

White .............................................. 124 10 1,530 0.62 0.30-1.14

Black .............................................. 9 1 61 1.13 0.03-6.29

Non-Hispanic .................................. 126 10 1,492 0.65 0.31-1.20

Hispanic ......................................... 9 1 144 0.48 0.01-2.67

Demographic characteristic P value

Total number

of homicides

95% confidence

interval

1 Percentages and chi square statistics were calculated after the

unknowns were dropped. 2 Unable to calculate significance with Fisher’s Exact Test.

3 MSA = Metropolitan Statistical Area.

n.s. = not significant.

3
35 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997

Category and code

Occupation

Industry (SIC)

P value

the proportion of workers who died

from other occupational injuries who

worked in sales. Service and sales

occupations combined accounted for

over half of all homicides (52

percent, 71) and, for all fatally

injured workers, the risk of dying

from homicide was almost seven

times higher for workers in these

two groups combined.

The specific occupations with the

most homicides were supervisors in

sales positions (10 victims), managers “not elsewhere classified” (9),

police (7), guards not in public

service (7), sales workers in “other

commodities” (6), garage and

service station attendants (6),

restaurant managers (5), sheriffs (5),

and taxi drivers (5).

Service occupations had the

highest rate of homicide of any

occupational group, at 1.40 per

100,000 workers (table 4). Sales

occupations also had an elevated

average homicide rate, 1.12 per

100,000 workers. Other occupations

with elevated rates were laborers at

1.29 and transportation and material

movers at 1.27 per 100,000 workers.

Industry. Retail trade had the

greatest proportion of homicides, 44

percent, or 60 (table 3). The

proportion of homicide victims who

worked in retail trade was significantly higher than the proportion of

victims of other fatal injuries who

worked in retail trade. For workers

who died from an injury, the risk of

dying from homicide was nearly 10

times higher for workers in retail

trade.

Retail and wholesale trade had

the highest average annual rate of

homicide per 100,000 workers, 1.57

(table 4).

The services industry accounted

for 16 percent, or 22, of all occupational homicides. This was significantly higher than the proportion of

victims of other injuries who worked

in the service industry (table 3). The

detailed industries with the most

homicides were eating and drinking

places at 25, police protection, 9,

taxi cabs, 7, grocery stores, 6, and

liquor stores, 5.

Circumstances of death

For the years 1991 through 1994,

the time of homicide was known for

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

2

Table 3. Occupation and industry for victims of workplace homicide and other fatal occupational injuries, Colorado, 1982-941

Occupational All other fatal

homicides occupational injuries

(N=135) (N=1,322)

Number Percent Number Percent

Service occupations (403-469) .............................. 41 30 87 7 <0.01

Sales (243-285) ..................................................... 30 22 48 4 <0.01

Manager/professional specialty (003-199) ............. 23 17 145 11 <0.05

Transportation (803-859) ....................................... 10 7 260 20 <0.01

Laborers (864-889) ................................................ 10 7 125 9 n.s.

Precision production, craft, repair (503-699) .......... 7 5 271 21 <0.01

Administrative support (303-389)........................... 5 4 32 2 n.s

Farming, forestry, fishing (473-499) ....................... 4 3 164 12 <0.01

Technicians (203-235) ........................................... 4 3 85 6 n.s.

Machinists (703-799) ............................................. 1 1 42 3 n.s.

Military occupations (903-905) .............................. 0 0 59 4 <0.01

Not classified or unknown ..................................... 0 0 4 0

Retail trade (52-59) ................................................ 60 44 50 4 <0.01

Services (70-89) .................................................... 22 16 178 13 <0.01

Public administration (91-97) ................................. 15 11 129 10 n.s.

Transportation, communications, electricity,

 gas (40-49) ......................................................... 13 10 242 18 <0.05

Finance, insurance, real estate (60-67) ................. 8 6 29 2 <0.01

Agriculture, forestry, fishing (01-09) ....................... 5 4 148 11 <0.01

Wholesale trade (50-51) ........................................ 5 4 83 6 n.s.

Construction (15-17).............................................. 4 3 257 19 <0.01

Manufacturing (20-39) ........................................... 3 2 112 8 <0.01

Mining (10-14) ....................................................... 0 0 92 7 <0.01

Not classified ......................................................... 0 0 2 0

2

1

Percentages and chi square statistics were calculated after the

unknowns were dropped.

2 Fisher’s Exact Test (two-tailed).

n.s. = not significant.

2
 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997 36

Total

number of

homicides

95%

confidence

interval

Category

47 of the 54 cases (87 percent). One

fifth (20 percent, 9) of all homicides

occurred between the hours of 9 p.m.

and midnight, and nearly half (42

percent, 19) occurred between 6 p.m.

and 6 a.m. Thirty-five percent (19)

of the 54 homicides took place over

the 2 weekend days. Sunday had the

most homicides (20 percent, 11), but

they were otherwise evenly distributed throughout the week.

The location was known and

classifiable in 117 out of the 135

workplace homicides (87 percent)

from 1982 through 1994. More than

half of these took place in public

buildings (57 percent, 67) and,

specifically, 26 occurred in restaurants or bars. Roads and highways

accounted for another 20 percent

(23) and homes for 11 percent (13).

Victims of occupational homicides

which occur in a home were primarily police or sheriffs.

Between 1991 and 1994, the

activity of the victim was known for

40 of the 54 homicides (74 percent).

Homicide victims were tending a

retail establishment in 33 percent, or

13 of the cases. Another 23 percent

(9) of the homicides occurred while

the victim was providing a protective

service. In 13 of the 54 homicides

(24 percent), the circumstances

surrounding the assault were

unknown. In over half of the

remaining cases, the assailant was a

robber (51 percent, 21) and, in an

additional 5 cases (12 percent), the

victim was an officer of the law

killed in the line of duty. The

perpetrator was a relative of, or

known to, the victim in six cases (15

percent) and a co-worker or former

co-worker in five cases (12 percent).

Most homicide victims in Colorado

workplaces from 1982 through 1994

were shot (84 percent, 106). Another

13 percent, or 16, were stabbed and 2

percent (3) were beaten. The manner

of homicide in the remaining 10 cases

was undetermined.

Colorado and the United States

When comparing occupational

homicide victims in Colorado to the

United States for 1992 through

1994, there were no statistically

significant differences in rates. The

3-year average rate of homicide per

100,000 workers was 0.85 for

Colorado and 0.88 for the Nation.

The rate for men in Colorado was

1.16 per 100,000 workers compared

to 1.35 for men in the U.S. For

women, the rates were 0.48 and

0.34, respectively. In Colorado, the

rate for whites was 0.84 compared to

0.68 in the United States. Among

blacks the rates were 1.41 and 1.55,

respectively. Finally, the average

rate of homicide for Hispanics in

Colorado was 0.43 and in the

Nation, 1.56.

Analysis and recommendations

Although non-homicide fatal

occupational injuries decreased in

Colorado from 1982 through 1994,

Colorado from 1982 through 1994,

homicides in the workplace did not.

Table 4. Homicides stratified by occupation and industry (SIC), Colorado, 1982-94

Average Average Average

number of annual annual rate

homicides workforce per

per year (in thousands) 100,000

Service occupations ................................................... 36 3 215 1.40 0.29-4.09

Laborers ..................................................................... 9 1 58 1.29 0.03-7.19

Transportation ............................................................. 9 1 59 1.27 0.03-7.07

Sales .......................................................................... 29 2 216 1.12 0.14-4.04

Farming, forestry, fishing ............................................ 4 0 41 0.81 0.00-2.43

Technicians ................................................................ 4 0 64 0.52 0.00-1.56

Manager/professional specialty .................................. 22 2 489 0.37 0.04-0.60

Precision production, craft, repair ............................... 7 1 77 0.33 0.01-1.84

Machinists .................................................................. 1 0 65 0.13 0.00-0.39

Administrative support ................................................ 4 0 267 0.12 0.00-0.36

Wholesale and retail trade .......................................... 65 5 319 1.57 0.51-3.66

Transportation, communications, electricity, gas ......... 13 1 104 0.96 0.02-5.35

Agriculture, forestry, fishing ........................................ 5 0 41 0.95 0.00-2.85

Finance, insurance, real estate ................................... 8 1 107 0.58 0.01-3.23

Services ..................................................................... 22 2 333 0.51 0.06-1.84

Public administration .................................................. 15 1 255 0.45 0.01-2.51

Construction ............................................................... 4 0 83 0.37 0.00-1.11

Manufacturing ............................................................. 3 0 203 0.11 0.00-0.33

Occupation, 1983-941 N=125

Industry (Standard Industrial Classification category), 1982-94 N=135

1

1982 rates by occupational category were not calculated due to a

change in the Bureau of Census coding in 1983.

NOTE: Bold rates indicate rates higher than the overall homicide

rate of 0.63.
37 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997

This is consistent with the movement of homicide from the third to

the second leading cause of death on

the job nationally. Furthermore,

analysis of data in Colorado also

showed that the use of multiple data

sources led to greater case reliability

in the later years, strengthening the

interpretation of the decreasing trend

in non-homicide fatal injuries. The

fact that the rate of homicides did

not decrease in Colorado is consistent with national data. The overall

rate for homicide in the United

States was 0.85 per 100,000 workers

from 1980 through 1989; from 1992

through 1994 it was 0.88. The

decrease in the rate of other workrelated fatalities makes the significance of occupational homicide all

the more important.

The risk of being a homicide

victim on the job was higher for men

than for women when adjusted for

high risk occupations in sales and

services and jobs in the retail

industry. The overall increased

share of fatalities from homicide

among women may be due to their

employment in occupations and

industries in which homicides occur

more often regardless of sex. It may

also be due to their lack of employment in occupations and industries

where other fatal injuries occur, such

as construction, transportation, and

manufacturing.

The data in this article are

consistent with other studies, which

have found elevated rates of workrelated homicides for men,7, 8, 9, 10, 11

blacks and Hispanics.12, 13, 14 The

rates calculated for blacks and

Hispanics were not elevated in

comparison with the overall homicide rate (0.63 per 100,000 workers)

in Colorado. Their rates also did not

differ significantly from the U.S.

rates for blacks, and Hispanics, even

though these two groups had rates

that were significantly higher than

those for whites and non-Hispanics.

The findings for workers in the

retail industry are consistent with

other studies which show elevated

risks for occupational homicide in

this category15. Workers in public

administration, particularly police

and sheriffs, have also been shown to

be at increased risk in other studies.

Other occupations with elevated

rates include sales, handlers and

laborers (particularly gas station

attendants), transportation occupations (particularly taxi cab drivers),

and services (particularly protective

services).

Robbery is the primary motive in

occupational homicides in Colorado

as well as the nation.16 The assailants have been unknown to the

victims in the majority of cases, and

many homicides in workplaces occur

at night and over the weekend.17

Finally, the majority of workplace

homicides have been reported to

occur in public buildings.

This article, in addition to other

studies on homicide in the workplace, shows that the majority of the

perpetrators have not been employed

at the workplace of the victims. The

data also show that homicides occur

in industries and occupations where

the worker deals with the general

public and handles money. Efforts to

prevent workplace homicides should

target these industries and workers

in these occupations.

Several preventive measures have

been implemented by various

employers. These include camera

surveillance, protective glass

separating the worker and the

public, timed drop boxes for cash,

improved visibility of the cashier

from the street, improved lighting,

and increased police surveillance.18

All of these measures should be

considered in situations where

employees have contact with the

public, especially in occupations

where money is handled. In

addition to these measures, studies

that examine the factors that differ

between robberies where the worker

is assaulted and those where he or

she is not, could contribute substantially to prevention strategies.

Because many homicides in

workplaces occur at night, a decrease

in nighttime hours of operation may

contribute to a decrease in the

number of workplace homicides in

some situations. Some employers

may be unwilling to lose potential

business by decreasing their hours of

operation when the risk of assault

seems relatively small for any one

workplace. However, when assessing the financial benefits of operating at night, the employer should

also weigh into the equation the

emotional stress for employees

working higher risk shifts, as well as

the potential emotional and physical

effects of assault on those employees.

The prevalence of gun use in

workplace homicides needs particular attention. Although 84 percent

of Colorado workplace homicides in

1993 were caused by guns, only 70

percent of all homicides in the State

were caused by firearms.19 The

installation of metal detectors in

high risk locations may prevent

workplace homicides by directly

alerting local police agencies to

increase surveillance.

The limitations of this study

include the lack of denominator data

by age groups, which precluded

calculating age-specific rates. Other

studies have reported elevated rates

for workers 65 years old and older.

In addition, data collection in the

1980s was less inclusive than the

method employed in the 1990s.

However, this discrepancy is not

expected to affect the results of this

study in any way other than an

underestimation of mortality.

Homicide is currently the second

leading cause of death on the job and

the leading cause for certain groups

of workers. The significance of the

effect of homicide on workers is

increasing as workers continue to be

successfully protected from other

fatal injuries. Because homicide is

becoming an increasingly significant

contributor to workplace deaths,

continued research is necessary.

While this research did not find

significant differences between

homicide rates in Colorado and the

United States, it is expected that

rates and risks will differ among
 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997 38

The study population included all

persons who died from injuries

sustained while working in Colorado

from 1982 through 1994. Workers

of all ages and from all employment

sectors, including self-employed and

volunteer workers, composed the

study population. Suicides were

excluded from the analysis.

Between 1982 and 1990, the

majority of cases were identified

from either death certificates that

indicated an injury at work or from

Workers’ Compensation claims. A

few additional cases were identified

from the Occupational Safety and

Health Administration (OSHA), the

Mining Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), and the National

Transportation Safety Board

(NTSB), and were confirmed by a

review of the death certificate.

Cases from 1982 through 1990 were

included when any one source

indicated a fatality at work, if a

review of the circumstances of death

on the death certificate were not

contradictory.

From 1991 through 1994, cases

were identified using any of the

above listed sources, as well as

newspaper articles, the National

Institute of Occupational Safety and

Health’s Fatal Assessment and

Control Evaluations (FACE)

investigations, and review of death

certificates with a farm or industrial

location of death. Cases from 1991

through 1994 were included only if

there were two source documents.

The difference in the number of

source documents used to identify

cases in the two datasets is not

expected to affect the results of this

study. Cases were categorized using

information from all of the sources

listed above, as well as highway

accident reports and coroners

reports. For detailed information on

case reliability, the reader is referred

to previous studies.20

Examination of all workplace

deaths from 1991 through 1994

determined that 9 percent (5) of the

homicide cases and 4 percent (17) of

all other workplace deaths would not

have been included using the

methods and criteria for selection of

the earlier years. Most of these cases

were identified by newspaper

articles. This difference in case

reliability is not expected to affect

the results of this study in any way

other than an underestimation of

mortality in the earlier years.

Death certificates were used to

determine sex, race, ethnicity

(Hispanic or non-Hispanic), age,

country of birth, and the date, time

and county of injury. Urban location

of injury was defined as the Metropolitan Statistical Area, as designated by the Federal Information

Processing Standards, and included

Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Douglas,

Jefferson, Boulder, Weld, Larimer,

El Paso, and Pueblo counties.

The industry in which each

homicide victim was employed was

classified using the 1987 Standard

Industrial Classification system21

and the occupation was classified

using the 1990 Occupational

Classification System developed by

the Bureau of the Census.22 These

were determined using Workers’

Compensation records, OSHA

reports, coroner reports, and

newspaper articles. When no other

source of information was available,

they were imputed from the usual

industry or occupation listed on the

death certificate after a review of the

circumstances of the death failed to

indicate the individual was engaged

in other than his or her usual

industry or occupation.

Homicide victims were classified

as being shot, stabbed, beaten, or

undetermined, as listed on the death

certificate. The type of location

where the homicide occurred (farm,

house, industrial place, etc.) was also

determined from the death certificate. For cases from 1991 through

1994, the worker’s activity at the

time of the homicide was determined

from Workers’ Compensation

reports, OSHA reports, FACE

investigations, or coroner reports.

Also for these later years, the

relationship between the perpetrator

and the victim was characterized

when it was known.

Data analysis

After the two datasets (1982-90

and 1991-94) were combined, the

annual number of homicides and

other injury deaths, the annual

proportionate mortality from

homicide, and the annual rates of

homicide and other injury deaths

were analyzed for long-term trends

using linear regression with the year

of death as the independent variable.

Aggregate frequency distributions

for all variables listed above were

calculated for all occupational

homicides and for all other fatal

occupational injury deaths and the

significance of the differences was

regions where demographic and

occupational differences exist. The

continued collection of data using

comprehensive methods such as

those employed by the Census of

Fatal Occupational Injuries program

of the Bureau of Labor Statistics,

will make this type of research

possible and will allow researchers

to monitor trends in mortality rates

from homicide. Finally, this

research reveals that homicide

victims differ substantially in many

respects from victims of other

occupational injuries, providing a

foundation for developing preventive

measures to deal with this public

health issue.

Technical Notes
39 Compensation and Working Conditions Spring 1997

assessed with chi square or Fisher’s

Exact Tests. Risk ratios were

calculated using Mantel-Haenszel

estimates, including a stratified

analysis for gender by occupational

and industry groups. Crude rates of

occupational homicide were calculated for each year, and stratified by

sex, race, ethnicity, industry, and

occupation using annual denominator data from the BLS publication,

Geographic Profile of Employment

and Unemployment.23 Rates by

occupational group were not

calculated for 1982 due to a change

1

 Bureau of Labor Statistics, “National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1994.” News

release, USDL 95-288. Washington, DC, August

3, 1995. 2

 Centers for Disease Control, Fatal Injuries

to Workers in the United States, 1980-1989: A

Decade of Surveillance, U.S. Department of

Health and Human Services (NIOSH), Publication No. 93-108, August 1993, pp. 1-27. 3

 Toscano, Guy and Windau, Janice. “Fatal

Work Injuries: Results from the 1992 National

Census.” Monthly Labor Review. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. October, 1993, pp. 39-48. 4

 Toscano, Guy and Windau, Janice. “The

Changing Character of Fatal Work Injuries.”

Monthly Labor Review. U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. October, 1994,

pp.17-28. 5

 Bell, Catherine A., Stout, Nancy A., Bender,

Thomas R., Conroy, Carol S., Crouse, William

E., and Myers, John R. “Fatal Occupational Injuries in the United States, 1980 through 1985.”

Journal of the American Medical Association.

1990; 263(22):3047-3050. 6

 The significance of this difference could not

be calculated with a Fisher’s Exact test, and rates

could not be calculated due to lack of denominator data. 7

 Castillo, Dawn N., and Jenkins, E. Lynn.

“Industries and Occupations at High Risk for

Work-related Homicide.” Journal of Occupain the Bureau of Census classification structure in 1983. For data

from 1992 through 1994 only,

homicides rates for Colorado and the

United States were compared.

Because the annual number of

homicides was small, 95 percent

confidence intervals for annual

incidence rates were calculated using

the Poisson distribution.

Acknowledgments

Data were collected from 1982

through 1990 by the Colorado

Department of Public Health and

Environment (CDPHE) Health

Statistics Section under a cooperative agreement with the National

Institute of Occupational Safety and

Health. Since 1991, CDPHE has

been collecting data on occupational

fatalities under a cooperative

agreement with the U.S. Department

of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics,

for the Census of Fatal Occupational

Injuries program. The Bureau of

Labor Statistics provided part of the

funding for this research. Statistical

support and data management

assistance was provided by Chun-Lo

Meng at CDPHE.

—Endnotes—

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