Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998 16

Work Injuries

and Illnesses

Occurring to Women

Women’s job related injuries and fatalities are substantially below

those of men, largely because of their lower proportions in highrisk industries and occupations. As more and more women take

high-risk jobs, however, the possibility exists that their risk of

injury and death will increase.

BY GUY A. TOSCANO

JANICE A. WINDAU

ANDREW KNESTAUT

Guy A. Toscano and Andrew Knestaut are economists and Janice A. Windau is an epidemiologist in the Office of Safety, Health and Working

Conditions, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Telephone: (202) 606-6165

E-mail: cfoistaff@bls.gov

Studies from occupational safety

and health professionals show

that women incur far fewer

work injuries than men. In fact, Bureau of Labor Statistics data for the

period 1992-96 reveal that although

they comprise slightly under half of

the total workforce, women incurred

less than one-tenth of job-related fatal

injuries and one-third of the nonfatal

injuries and illnesses that required

time off to recuperate.1

One explanation for this large discrepancy is that more women than men

are employed in relatively less dangerous jobs, such as teaching and service

occupations, where work is performed

indoors in controlled environments.

There were virtually no women employed in the most dangerous occupations in the construction trades, such

as roofing and structural metal work,

or in other high-risk jobs where work

is performed outdoors.2 Women today incur far fewer job-related fatalities and serious injuries than men in

part because of their low proportionate share of employment in high risk

industries. But if more women enter

high-risk occupations, like those in

construction and mining, their risk of

injury or death may increase.

This article profiles job-related fatalities, injuries, and illnesses that occurred to women from 1992-96 and

compares them with those occurring

to men during the same time period.

Fatal injuries

Slightly over 2,500 women were fatally injured at work during 1992-96—

about 8 percent of the 32,000 job-related fatalities that occurred during

that period. Homicides and highway

incidents accounted for nearly twothirds of the work injury deaths among

women. (See table 1.)

Homicides. About 40 percent of the

women and 14 percent of the men who

were fatally injured were victims of

homicide. Yet, men incurred over four

times as many job-related homicides

as women. Regardless of gender, most

homicide victims were shot; but

women were strangled or beaten to

death relatively more often than men.

Two-thirds of homicides occurred in

the retail and service industries.

Nearly one-half of the women fatally assaulted worked in retail establishments, such as grocery stores, eating and drinking places, and gasoline

service stations. (See table 2.) Yet,
17 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998

men incurred a disproportionate share

of the murders in these establishments.

They accounted for about 50 percent

of the workforce but comprised 80 percent of the homicide victims. This

large discrepancy may be because onehalf of these fatal assaults occurred at

night, between 8 p.m. and 4 a.m.,

when men primarily staff these businesses.3

About one-third of the women who

were murdered on the job worked in

sales occupations either as a cashier,

sales supervisor, proprietor, or clerk.

All female managers of food serving

and lodging establishments who were

fatally injured were homicide victims.

Robbery was the primary motive

for fatal assaults in retail industries.

The availability of ready cash and the

accessibility of the establishments

made them attractive targets roundthe-clock.4

Although most of the female victims of job-related homicides did not

know their attackers, more than onefourth were fatally assaulted by people

they did know—co-workers, clients,

spouses, or friends. (See table 3.)

About 16 percent were victims of domestic disputes that spilled over into

the workplace. Less than 1 percent of

homicides to male victims resulted

from domestic disputes.

Highway vehicle crashes. Job-related

highway incidents claimed the lives of

650 women during 1992-96. Health

care and social service workers accounted for almost one-fifth of these

deaths—about the same number as

motor vehicle operators, such as truck

and bus drivers and driver-sales workers. About one-fifth of the women who

died in highway vehicle crashes

worked for a government agency.

Highway vehicle crashes accounted for

a slightly higher proportion of job-related deaths among women than

among men.

Other incidents resulting in fatalities.

About 15 percent of the fatal injuries

to women resulted from other transportation-related incidents, such as

aircraft crashes or being struck by a

vehicle. Women killed in aircraft

crashes included airline attendants and

managers and professionals traveling

to meetings or conferences. Women

working on highway construction

projects, female crossing guards, and

women crossing streets accounted for

most of the women who died after being struck by a vehicle. Highway and

other vehicle-related incidents were

the leading fatal event for female police officers and guards, while homicide was the leading event for men in

these occupations.

Falls accounted for 5 percent of the

job-related fatalities among women,

compared with 11 percent for men.

Over half the fatal falls occurring to

women took place on stairs, steps, or

other walking surfaces; whereas, fatal

falls to male workers were primarily

from roofs, ladders, scaffolds, vehicles,

or building girders.

Another 5 percent of female workers’ fatalities resulted from contact

with objects and equipment, such as

being crushed in running machinery

or struck by a falling object. Exposure to harmful substances or environments, such as electrocutions, drownTable 1. Job-related fatalities by event or exposure, 1992-96

Event or exposure

Women Men

Number Percent Number Percent

Total ...................................................... 2,506 100 29,061 100

Homicides ..................................................... 973 39 4,173 14

Highway crashes .......................................... 650 26 5,764 20

Struck by vehicle .......................................... 156 6 1,683 6

Falls .............................................................. 137 5 3,081 11

Aircraft crashes ............................................. 128 5 1,536 5

Contact with objects ..................................... 125 5 4,862 17

Harmful exposures ....................................... 102 4 2,868 10

Other ............................................................. 235 9 5,094 18

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1992-96

Table 2. Job-related homicides by industry, 1992-96

Industry

Women Men

Number Percent Number Percent

Total ...................................................... 973 100 4,173 100

Retail trade ................................................... 471 48 1,938 46

Grocery stores .......................................... 136 14 695 17

Eating places ............................................ 110 11 268 6

Drinking places ......................................... 36 4 148 4

Gasoline service stations .......................... 28 3 166 4

Services ........................................................ 208 21 622 15

Hotels and motels ..................................... 22 2 50 1

Beauty shops ............................................ 20 2 10 1 ( )

Health services ......................................... 37 4 26 1

Finance, insurance, and real estate ............. 72 7 124 3

Depository institutions .............................. 29 3 22 1

Real estate ............................................... 28 3 78 2

Other businesses .......................................... 98 10 969 23

Government .................................................. 124 13 520 12

1 Less than 0.5 percent

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries,

1992-96

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational

Injuries, 1992-96

1 Less than 0.5 percent.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of

Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1992-96
 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998 18

ings, and the inhalation of chemicals,

accounted for 4 percent of the fatalities among women workers. Two percent of the women killed at work were

victims of fire and explosions.

Comparing occupational fatality

rates. Besides incurring fewer fatal

work injuries than men, women have

much lower fatality rates than male

workers.5 Female workers had a work

fatality rate of less than 1 fatal injury

per 100,000 employed women in 1996,

compared with 8 fatal work injuries

per 100,000 employed men for the

same period of time. Table 4 compares

fatality rates for women and men in

the 20 occupations with the largest

number of female fatalities. The highest rates for female workers were generally 2 or 3 times less than the rates

for men in the same occupations.

Table 5 shows the leading causes of

fatalities for both men and women in

these occupations.

Nonfatal injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work

Female wage and salary workers in

the private sector incurred slightly over

650,000 injuries and illnesses in 1995,

or one-third of the more than 2 million cases resulting in days away from

work to recuperate.

Sprains and strains accounted for

a little over two-fifths of the injury and

illness cases for both men and women.

(See table 6.)

Although male workers incurred

greater numbers of most types of injuries and illnesses, women accounted

for more cases of carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, respiratory system

diseases, infectious and parasitic diseases, and disorders resulting from

anxiety or stress. Their predominance

in certain health care occupations may

explain part of their increased risk of

suffering infectious and parasitic diseases.

Almost half of the female workers’

injuries and illnesses resulted from

bodily reaction or exertion, such as

overexertion in lifting or pushing and

repetitive grasping of handtools. (See

table 7.) Falls, primarily on the same

level, and contact with objects (such

as being struck by falling objects, striking against objects, or getting caught

in running equipment) each accounted

for about one-fifth of the job-related

injuries among women.

Compared with men, women incurred more job-related injuries from

repetitive motion, assaults, inhalation

of harmful substances, and aircraft

crashes.

Women accounted for about twothirds of the nearly 23,000 injuries

reported from workplace assaults. The

manner in which women were assaulted varied. Reported cases include

both physical and verbal incidents resulting in days away from work to recuperate. (See table 8.) About 70 percent of all nonfatal assaults that resulted in days away from work occurred in service industries such as

nursing homes, social services, and

hospitals. These injuries resulted primarily from assaults by patients. Another 20 percent of the cases occurred

in retail industries, primarily eating

and drinking establishments and grocery stores—the most vulnerable

workers being female stock handlers

who incurred about one-fourth of these

assaults.

Occupations with large numbers of

nonfatal injuries and illnesses. A

comparison of risk between men and

women by occupation shows that

women had a higher chance of injury

in 15 of the 20 occupations for which

women reported the largest number of

nonfatal injuries. (See table 9.) For example, women working as registered

nurses had a 1 in 49 chance of injury

compared to male registered nurses,

who had a 1 in 75 chance of injury.

Women also had a higher chance of

incurring a nonfatal injury or illness

in 12 of the top 20 occupations for

which men had the highest number of

job-related injuries or illnesses.

Conclusion

Women have far fewer fatal work

injuries than men; and, although they

also have fewer nonfatal injuries, they

do have a higher chance of certain jobrelated injuries, such as those resulting from repetitive motion or assaults.

Women in certain occupations also

had a higher risk of nonfatal injury or

illness than their male counterparts.

More time and data however, are

needed to ascertain if serious injuries

incurred by women will increase relative to their increase in employment

in high-risk occupations. Further

studies are needed to evaluate comparative severity (median days away

from work) of job-related injuries and

illnesses between women and men.

This information could be valuable for

re-engineering work environments to

reduce the number and severity of injuries in the future.

Table 3. Job-related homicides by circumstances or alleged perpetrator, 1992-96

Circumstances or alleged

perpetrator

Women Men

Number Percent Number Percent

Total ...................................................... 973 100 4,173 100

Robberies and other crimes ......................... 709 73 3,697 89

Work associates ........................................... 99 10 423 10

Coworker, former coworker ...................... 62 6 274 7

Customer, client ........................................ 37 4 149 4

Relatives ....................................................... 106 11 28 1 ( )

Spouse, ex-spouse ................................... 91 9 3 1 ( )

Other relative ............................................ 15 2 16 1 ( )

Other personal acquaintances ..................... 59 6 25 1 ( )

Boy(or girl)friend, ex-boy(or girl)friend ...... 50 5 7 1 ( )

Other acquaintances ................................ 9 1 18 1 ( )

1 Less than 0.5 percent

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries,

1992-96

1 Less than 0.5 percent.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of

Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1992-96
19 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998

—ENDNOTES—

1

 Data on fatal work injuries are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), 1992-96. This program,

which has collected occupational fatality data nationwide since 1992, uses diverse data sources to

identify, verify, and profile fatal work injuries. Information about each workplace fatality (occupation and other worker characteristics, equipment

being used, and circumstances of the event) is obtained by cross-referencing source documents,

such as death certificates, workers’ compensation

records, and reports to Federal and State agencies.

This method assures counts are as complete and

accurate as possible.

Data on nonfatal injuries and illnesses are from

the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses

(SOII), 1995. This program collects information

from a random sample of about 200,000 establishments representing most private industry wage

and salary workers. Worker characteristics are

collected only for those workers sustaining injuries and illnesses that require days away from work

to recuperate. Because the scope and methodology of CFOI and SOII are slightly different, comparison of fatal and nonfatal data are problematic.

For additional information, access the Bureau’s

Internet site at http://stats.bls.gov/oshhome.htm

or e-mail the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries staff at cfoistaff@bls.gov

Employment data are from the BLS Current

Population Survey (CPS). See Employment and

Earnings, Volume 44, No. 1, January 1997 for

an explanation of the scope and data collection

methods of the CPS. 2

 See “Outdoor Occupations Exhibit High

Rates of Fatal Injuries,” Bureau of Labor Statistics, Summary 95-6, March 1995. 3

 “Workers on Flexible and Shift Schedules in

1997,” USDL 98-119, Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 26, 1998. 4

 See Rosemary J. Erickson, Armed Robbers

and their Crimes, Athena Research Corporation,

Seattle, WA, 1996. 5

 See the Technical note in “State and Industry Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1992-96” in this

issue for an explanation of how fatality rates are

calculated.

Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by occupation and gender for the 20 jobs with the highest number of fatalities among women,

1996

Occupation

Fatalities Employment1

(in thousands)

Fatalities

per 100,000 workers2

Women Men Women Men Women Men

Sales supervisors and proprietors ........................ 29 196 1,688 2,813 1.7 7.0

Public transportation attendants ........................... 26 12 77 18 33.8 66.7

Cashiers ............................................................... 24 70 2,231 625 1.1 11.0

Nursing aides, orderlies, attendants ..................... 18 5 1,635 215 1.1 2.3

Managers, food serving and lodging places ......... 17 58 635 748 2.7 7.8

Truck drivers ......................................................... 16 769 160 2,859 10.0 26.9

Registered nurses ................................................ 15 3 ( ) 1,853 133 .8 3 ( )

Farm operators and managers ............................. 11 365 304 1,010 3.6 36.1

Laborers, except construction .............................. 10 203 269 1,065 3.7 19.0

Secretaries ........................................................... 10 3 ( ) 3,120 44 .3 3 ( )

Social workers ...................................................... 10 9 510 235 2.0 3.8

Farm workers ........................................................ 9 159 158 682 3.2 21.0

Teachers, except post-secondary ........................ 9 15 3,515 1,209 .3 1.2

Construction laborers ........................................... 8 283 31 778 25.8 36.1

Sales counter clerks ............................................. 8 6 134 65 5.2 9.2

Guards .................................................................. 7 87 200 611 3.5 14.2

Waiters and waitresses ........................................ 7 4 1,071 304 .7 1.3

Accountants and auditors ..................................... 6 7 861 677 .7 1.0

Police and detectives ............................................ 6 105 152 808 3.9 13.0

Therapists ............................................................. 6 3 347 127 1.7 2.4

1 The employment figures are annual average estimates of employed

civilians, age 16 and older, from the Current Population Survey, 1996. 2 The rate represents the number of fatal occupational injuries per

100,000 workers and was calculated as follows: 

(N/W) x 100,000, where 

N = the number of fatally injured workers, age 16 and older, and

W = the number of employed workers, age 16 and older. 3 Data do not meet BLS publication criteria.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census

of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1996
 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998 20

Table 6. Selected nature of injury or illness, cases resulting in days away from work, private wage and salary

workers, 1995

Nature of injury

or illness

Women Men Median days

away from

Number Percent Number Percent work

Total ...................................................... 667,166 100 1,355,098 100 5

Sprains and strains ....................................... 302,435 45 566,519 42 5

Surface wounds, bruises .............................. 78,549 12 171,391 13 3

Open wounds ............................................... 38,540 6 158,793 12 3

Fractures ...................................................... 30,704 5 92,799 7 18

Carpal tunnel syndrome ............................... 22,286 3 20,149 1 30

Burns ............................................................ 15,747 2 36,469 3 4

Tendonitis ..................................................... 12,819 2 9,123 1 12

Symptoms and ill-defined conditions ............ 10,285 2 11,286 1 3

Loss of consciousness ............................. 1,091 1 ( ) 500 1 () 2

Other musculoskeletal disorders .................. 9,386 1 11,026 1 1 ( )

Skin disorders ............................................... 4,247 1 5,744 1 () 3

Anxiety, stress, neurotic disorders ................ 4,173 1 1,689 1 ( ) 23

Respiratory system diseases ........................ 2,079 1 ( ) 1,500 1 () 5

Infectious and parasitic diseases .................. 1,964 1 ( ) 786 1 () 5

1 Less than 0.5 percent

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 1995

Table 5. Leading fatal events by occupation and gender for the 20 jobs with the highest number of fatalities among women, 1996

Occupation

Leading fatal events

(percent)

Women Men

Sales supervisors and proprietors ........................ Homicides (72) Homicides (64)

Public transportation attendants ........................... Aircraft crashes (100) Aircraft crashes (75)

Cashiers ............................................................... Homicides (92) Homicides (90)

Nursing aides, orderlies, attendants ..................... Highway (56), homicides (22) Assaults and violent acts (60)

Managers, food serving and lodging places ......... Homicides (100) Homicides (76)

Truck drivers ......................................................... Highway incidents (75) Highway incidents (65)

Registered nurses ................................................ Highway incidents (47) (No data.)

Farm operators and managers ............................. Transportation incidents (64) Struck by object (29); overturned vehicle (25)

Laborers, except construction .............................. Contact with object (30);

 transportation incident (30)

 Transportation incident (30);

 struck by object (30);

Secretaries ........................................................... Homicides (30); highway (30) (No data.)

Social workers ...................................................... Highway incidents (60); homicides (30) Homicides (67)

Farm workers ........................................................ Assaults by animals (44) Contact with object (22);

 nonhighway incidents (22)

Teachers, except post-secondary ........................ Homicides (33); highway incidents (33) Aircraft crashes (40); falls (27)

Construction laborers ........................................... Transportation (75) Contact with object (30); transportation (29)

Sales counter clerks ............................................. Homicides (88) Homicides (67)

Guards .................................................................. Worker struck by vehicle (43) Homicides (56);

Waiters and waitresses ........................................ Homicides (100) Assaults and violent acts (75 )

Accountants and auditors ..................................... Highway incidents (67) Homicides (43)

Police and detectives ............................................ Highway incidents (50) Homicides (50); highway incidents (32)

Therapists ............................................................. Highway incidents (67) (Less than 3 fatalities.)

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1996

1 Less than 0.5 percent.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1992-96
21 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998

Table 7. Selected event or exposure cases resulting in days away from work, private wage and salary workers,

1995

Event or exposure

Women Men Median days

away from

Number Percent Number Percent work

Total ...................................................... 667,166 100 1,355,098 100 5

Bodily reaction and exertion ......................... 320,535 48 557,081 41 7

Overexertion in lifting ................................ 112,873 17 220,140 16 6

Repetitive motion ...................................... 51,091 8 30,983 2 18

Falls .............................................................. 134,769 20 206,968 15 7

Contact with objects and equipment ............. 127,453 19 430,740 32 4

Exposure to harmful substances or

environments .............................................. 36,972 6 65,862 5 3

Due to inhalation ....................................... 6,183 1 5,929 1 () 2

Assaults and violent acts .............................. 18,156 3 10,619 1 4

By persons ................................................ 15,440 2 7,286 1 () 5

Transportation incidents ............................... 16,940 3 56,016 4 8

Highway .................................................... 12,313 2 32,938 2 8

Aircraft ...................................................... 386 1 ( ) 98 1 () 8

1 Less than 0.5 percent

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor

Statistics, Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 1995

Table 8. Workplace assault cases resulting in days away from work, private wage

and salary workers, 1995

Type of assault Women Men

Median days

away from

work

Total ...................................................... 15,440 7,286 5

Hitting, kicking, and beating .......................... 6,255 3,238 4

Squeezing, pinching, and scratching ............ 1,927 264 3

Biting ............................................................. 720 237 2

Threats or verbal abuse ................................ 133 168 5

Rape ............................................................. 66 1 ( ) 41

Stabbing ....................................................... 31 136 8

Shooting ....................................................... 1 ( ) 188 46

Assaults, other2 ............................................ 4,782 1,797 7

Assaults, unspecified .................................... 1,502 1,258 9

1 Data do not meet BLS publication criteria. 2 Other assaults account for slightly over

one-fourth of the total. These incidents may

include being poked in the eye, being pushed,

something being thrown at the victim, stress

from being robbed, etc.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau

of Labor Statistics, Survey of Occupational

Injuries and Illnesses, 1995

1 Less than 0.5 percent.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 1992-96
 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998 22

Table 9. The 20 jobs with the highest number of nonfatal injuries and illnesses requiring time off work by gender, private wage and

salary workers, 1995

Occupation

Number of nonfatal injuries

and illnesses

Employment1

(in thousands)

Chance of nonfatal

injury/illness

Women Men Women Men Women2 Men

Women

Nursing aides, orderlies, attendants ..................... 89,687 10,204 1,069 133 *1:12 1:13

Registered nurses ................................................ 26,077 1,625 1,275 122 *1:49 1:75

Cashiers ............................................................... 24,892 5,138 891 269 *1:36 1:52

Assemblers ........................................................... 20,120 35,167 435 708 1:22 1:20

Maids and housemen ........................................... 19,396 6,538 324 85 1:17 1:13

Miscellaneous food preparation jobs .................... 16,813 17,179 98 149 *1:6 1:9 

Cooks ................................................................... 16,601 18,615 459 733 *1:28 1:39

Laborers, except construction .............................. 16,535 97,721 201 923 1:12 1:9 

Janitors and cleaners ........................................... 14,966 37,258 345 993 *1:23 1:27

Waiters and waitresses ........................................ 13,705 3,697 418 169 *1:30 1:46

Sales supervisors and proprietors ........................ 13,304 12,339 1,191 1,763 *1:90 1:143

Kitchen workers, food preparing ........................... 13,138 4,285 75 39 *1:6 1:9 

Licensed practical nurses ..................................... 12,771 457 266 14 *1:21 1:31

Stock handlers and baggers ................................. 11,150 23,413 144 357 *1:13 1:15

Textile sewing machine operators ........................ 9,804 1,522 458 78 *1:47 1:51

Truck drivers ......................................................... 9,657 141,101 62 2,201 *1:6 1:16

Health aides, except nursing ................................ 9,268 2,163 179 59 *1:19 1:27

Secretaries ........................................................... 7,644 197 2,538 28 1:332 1:142

Hand packers and packagers ............................... 6,240 4,867 136 98 1:22 1:20

Public transportation attendants ........................... 6,212 1,063 44 12 *1:7 1:11

Men

Truck drivers ......................................................... 9,657 141,101 62 2,201 *1:6 1:16

Laborers, except construction .............................. 16,535 97,721 201 923 1:12 1:9 

Construction laborers ........................................... 786 42,257 15 662 1:19 1:16

Janitors and cleaners ........................................... 14,966 37,258 345 993 *1:23 1:27

Assemblers ........................................................... 20,120 35,167 435 708 1:22 1:20

Carpenters ............................................................ 385 34,435 6 823 *1:16 1:24

Welders and cutters .............................................. 1,395 28,381 26 531 1:19 1:19

Stock handlers and baggers ................................. 11,150 23,413 144 357 *1:13 1:15

Groundskeepers, gardeners, except farm ............ 982 20,394 21 497 *1:21 1:24

Automobile mechanics ......................................... 146 19,480 3 616 *1:21 1:32

Shipping and receiving clerks ............................... 4,534 19,208 172 415 1:38 1:22

Electricians ........................................................... 293 17,719 12 596 1:41 1:34

Miscellaneous food preparation jobs .................... 16,813 17,179 98 149 *1:6 1:9 

Drivers-sales workers ........................................... 1,555 15,993 5 130 *1:3 1:8 

Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters ................. 250 15,221 6 393 *1:24 1:26

Bus, truck, and stationary engine mechanics ....... 133 14,012 1 280 *1:8 1:20

Industrial truck operators ...................................... 1,081 13,989 35 451 1:32 1:32

Farm workers ........................................................ 2,275 13,743 78 507 *1:34 1:37

Industrial machinery repairers .............................. 661 13,662 17 519 *1:26 1:38

Machinists ............................................................. 368 11,107 33 448 1:90 1:40

1 The employment figures are annual average estimates of employed

civilians, age 16 and older, from the Current Population Survey, 1995. 2 An asterisk (*) indicates that women have a greater chance than men of

incurring an injury: Chance = employment / nonfatal cases.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Survey of

Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, 1995

Truckdrivers

Truckdrivers
23 Compensation and Working Conditions Summer 1998