Mo. Workers Experienced Fewer Nonfatal Workplace Injuries, Illnesses in 2003

Missouri workers witnessed some positive numbers for their workplaces in 2003.

According to the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, the most serious nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases involve lost work time. There were 22,770 nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work in Missouri private industry in 2003. This was a 15.0 percent decrease from the 26,802 nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work in 2002.

The Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses is an annual survey administered by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics in collaboration with the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations’ Research and Analysis Section. Occupational injury and illness data are collected from approximately 5,400 Missouri employers each year.

The survey also concluded there were 8,300 nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work in the goods-producing sectors. Manufacturing was the goods-producing aggregate sector with the most injuries and illnesses at 4,700.

There were 14,470 nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work in the service-providing sectors. Trade, transportation, and utilities was the service-providing aggregate sector with the most injuries and illnesses at 7,220.

Women were the injured or ill worker in 31.9 percent of the nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases involving days away from work. Education and health services was the aggregate sector in which women accounted for the largest percentage (82.9 percent) of the nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases.

Workers aged 35 to 44 years accounted for 26.7 percent of the total number of nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases with days away from work.

Workers with one to five years of service had the most (35.0 percent) nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work.

White only workers accounted for 59.3 percent of the nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work.

Transportation and material moving occupations was the major occupational group with the highest number of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work with 4,050.

In 2003, the survey began using the 2002 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) for the 2003 reference year. The Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system was used for the survey prior to 2003. NAICS recognizes hundreds of new businesses in the United States economy. NAICS classifies establishments into a detailed industry based on the production processes and the provided services. The industry estimates from the 2003 survey are not comparable with prior years due to the conversion to NAICS.

Four characteristics are used to describe the event that caused an occupational injury or illness – nature of injury or illness, part of body affected, source of injury or illness, and event or exposure:

* Sprains/strains was the nature (physical characteristics) of injury or illness in 43.8 percent of the nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work.
* Trunk was the part of body affected in 34.8 percent of all nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases involving days away from work.
* Worker motion or position was the source of injury or illness in 19.9 percent of all nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work.
* Contact with objects and equipment was the event or exposure in 24.5 percent of the nonfatal occupational injury and illness cases involving days away from work.

New characteristics for 2003 injury and illness data are time of event, hours on the job before event occurred, and day of week:

* The time of event for most (30.0 percent) of the nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work was 8:01 a.m. to 12 noon.
* The hours on the job before event occurred category with the most (21.7 percent) nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses with days away from work was 2 hours to less than 4 hours.
* Tuesday was the day of the week when most (21.2 percent) of the nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses involving days away from work occurred.

For more information regarding this survey, visit www.bls.gov/iif.