Worker Injury/Illness Rate Falls to Record Low in 2000

The private-industry workplace injury and illness rate fell to 6.1 cases for every 100 employees in the year 2000, down 3 percent from a rate of 6.3 in 1999, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported.

The 2000 rate was the lowest recorded since the bureau began reporting the injury and ilness figures in the early 1970s. The rates continued to decline in most industries, including more dangerous ones such as construction and manufacturing.

The number of injuries and illnesses in 2000 were about the same as those reported for 1999--about 5.7 million cases, but the number of worker hours rose 2 percent. The total lost-workday rate held at 3.0 in both 1999 and 2000, which were the lowest recorded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Source: OSHA Up to Date, March 2002