Northeast States Lead Nation for Low Worker-Death Rates: Report

Two New England States lead the nation in terms of having the lowest rate of work-related deaths and most states in the Northeast rank well above the national average, according to a new report from a major labor group.

New Hampshire and Rhode Island lead the nation, with 1.8 deaths per 100,000 workers, according to the AFL-CIO. Three other states – New Jersey, Connecticut and Massachusetts – come in a close second, with 2.1 deaths per 100,000 workers,

The rankings and data are based on federal figures from 2006 — the most recent year available — compiled by the AFL-CIO.

Nationally, the average rate was 4 deaths per 100,000 workers. New York and Maine, which ranked sixth and ninth respectively, both beat that average. Pennsylvania and Vermont ranked nineteenth, each having 4 deaths per 100,000 workers.

Other nearby states fared average or slightly worse. Virginia ranked twenty-third, with 4.3 deaths per 100,000 workers. Delaware and Maryland, ranked fifteenth and sixteenth, respectively, with 3.5 and 3.7 deaths per 100,000 workers. The District of Columbia was not ranked, but was well below average with 2.6 deaths per 100,000 workers.

All told, the data show there were more than 5,800 fatal workplace injuries reported nationwide in 2006, about 100 more than in 2005. The numbers also showed a troubling trend: a significant increase in worker deaths among Hispanics.

Alaska had the highest fatality rate at 13.8 deaths per 100,000 workers, followed by Wyoming, West Virginia and Montana. Officials say those states rank high on the list because they traditionally have high employment in dangerous jobs such as logging, mining and oil and gas drilling

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A copy of the report is available here.