The star-independent. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1904-1917, 1915-02-24
hints ON THE PREVENTION
OF INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS
Commissioner Jackson Comments Upon
the Great Loss in Time and Money
to Both Employers and Employees
Due to Mishaps in 1914


Price Jackson, Commissioner of Labor
and Industry, which includes some in
teresting facts compiled from tabula-
tion of the accidents reported to the
Department of Labor and Industry
during the year 1914. Commissioner
jackson says.
Thirty eight thousand, one hundred
and twenty-six accidents were reported
to the State Department of Labor and
Industry during the year 1914. This
represents a great loss, not only in
time and money to both employers
and employees but also represents a
widespread condition of suffering and
unhappiness in the families of the
w0rkmen.
.sThe one hopeful feature of this
record is that of the $4,000 accidents,
$4,000 are reported of minor serious
ness. Such large number of accidents
of this character would seem to indi-
cate a greater amount of carelessness
than of actual danger and would i'm
ply possibility that the number could
be greatly reduced.
''One of the best ways of prevent
ing accidents is by educating the indi-
vidual workman to a realization of his
absolute personal responsibility. Each
man should become trained to avoid
foolhardy or careless actions when
working with machinery, and also
trained to use the precautionary meth
DDS that are being so generally devel-
oped by safety experts throughout our
large industries Employers should see
to it that educational work in the mills
is accompanied by the best mechanical
means of protection, by supplying
safeguards for all dangerous places,
and where necessary for the moving
parts of machinery.
''The loss in wages due to the acci-
dents reported was $1,O4S,503.96, and
this is by no means the total amount.
in this figure the loss of employers has
not been included. Whenever an acci-
dent occurs, it causes general disturb
ance among all the workmen that re-
quires some time to settle again to
normal activity. The injured man
must, in many instances, be replaced
by one who is probably new to the es-
tablishment, and probably less expert
enced in that particular job In this
way the organization of the establish
ment is disrupted, production is les
sened and costs increased. According
ly, it may be justly assumed that the
$1,04S,5O3.96 given above represents
only part of the total monetary loss.
According to the report, the total
number of days lost by the workman on
account of these accidents is 426,S24.
This would be equal to the time of one
man working steadily from 800 years
after Christ to the present, namely,
sixteen centuries. As no cases were
reported to the department which oc-
casioned two days or less of inability
to work, it can readily be seen that
this number of days lost, as well as
the amount of money, is far below the
total loss in our industries. The aver
age loss to each workman, according
to the number reported, was II days.
eff this were all of the story; that
is, the economic effect of these 3S, ,126
accidents, it would be sufficiently
strong to show great need of remedy.
But when we consider the far-reachlng
injury to the social well-being of the
people of our Commonwealth, the need
of remedy grows imperative. 1t has
been found that depending upon these
injured workmen are 64,016 other per-
sons. This means total of over 1OO,-
900 persons affected by these acci-
dents; from another point of view, one
person-in every seventy-seven living in
our State, affected by the accidents re-
ported to the department. To the en-
ployer the loss is of time and money;
to the employe the loss is time and
money and physical suffering, to the
dependents the loss is time and money
and sufferings perhaps equaling that of
the employe.
"The report under discussion, the
most important figures of which have
been quoted, shows the economic and
social Importance of industrial acci-
dents. 1t is hoped that this presenta'
tion will tend to awaken public interest
to the necessity of accident prevention
work. 1t is believed that by the united
efforts of all concerned this great bur
den of suffering and loss can be tre-
mendously reduced