2010 Death Rates Among Workers Not Declining Yet

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released a preliminary report that shows the fatalities among American workers have not declined but it hasn't really increased either.

The numbers for 2010 are very close to what the reports for 2009 showed. Fatalities among workers were calculated out to be 3.5 deaths in 100,000 workers. Within specific industries, there was a higher rate of deaths while other categories of worker deaths actually declined.

Here are some of the highlights of the Bureau's findings:

• The number of self-employed workers declined by 6% to 999 workers
• Workplace homicides declined 7% which is the lowest number every recorded
• Workplace homicides among women actually increased by 13%
• Fatalities in the construction injuries declined by 10% from 2009 and are actually down 40% since statistics of 2006
• Fatalities among police officers are up 40% in 2010
• Workplace deaths caused by fires more than doubled to 109 in 2010 which is the highest tally since 2003

There are many different factors that influence the fatalities in the workplace including the increased number of work hours Americans are putting in on the job. However, the statistics show that still more attention is necessary in regards to workplace safety and that training employees properly is still a key element toward reducing the statistics for 2011 reports.