Workplace Health and Safety

1990-2013

• Total number of fatal occupational injuries: 2,470
• 94% were male
• 74% were White, non-Hispanic
• 18% were of Hispanic origin
• Age of death ranged from 15 to 93 years; 65% were younger than 50 years of age
• All 21 counties experienced occupational fatalities
• 84% were residents of New Jersey
• 15% were foreign-born
• 261 were public employees
• Transportation-related (n=755, 30%) and Fall-related (n=417, 17%) incidents were the leading causes of injury
• The majority of fatal injuries occurred in the Construction (n=532, 21%) and Transportation and Warehousing (n=391, 16%) industries
• The highest number of fatalities occurred in Transportation and Material Moving (n=732, 30%) and Construction and Extraction (n=509, 21%) occupations

Work-related fatal and non-fatal injuries are serious public health concerns which are preventable through occupational health surveillance efforts. Even though occupational injuries are largely preventable, there have been over 4,000 workers that have been fatally injured at work each year in the US since 2000. In NJ, there have been over 2,000 fatal occupational injuries from 1990-2013. Ongoing surveillance of occupational fatalities can help public health and other governmental agencies track and prevent future work-related fatal injuries.

The following are the current national priority areas that CDC/NIOSH has determined to be the most critical areas to focus resources:

1. Falls in residential and commercial construction, including renovation and maintenance
2. Machinery with emphasis on construction, manufacturing and mobile equipment
3. Foreign-born workers
4. Energy production industries with expanding activity

In addition to these in-scope areas, NJ has established additional categories of fatalities to focus on: public employees (NJ has an OSHA-approved state plan that covers public sector workers, thus providing a concerted approach to intervention); highway work zones (NJ is the most densely populated state with approximately 39,000 miles of public roadways); and youths (NJ has a large seasonal tourist industry, which may place teenage workers in potentially hazardous work environments).

Tables and Graphs

1. Number and Rate of Fatal Occupational Injuries in New Jersey [pdf 275k]

DEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS

Tables and Graphs

1. Demographic Characteristics of Fatally-Injured Workers [pdf 221k]
2. Selected Characteristics of Fatal Occupational Injuries by Race, Ethnicity, and Foreign Birth [pdf 223k]
3. Number and Rate of Fatal Occupational Injuries by Age Group [pdf 183k]
4. Number and Rate of Fatal Occupational Injuries by Race and Ethnicity [pdf 245k]
5. Gender of Worker:
   1. Number and Rate [pdf 279k]
   2. Industry Subsector [pdf 251k]
   3. Occupation Subgroup [pdf 202k]

Tables and Graphs

1. Number of Fatal Occupational Injuries by Incident Type [pdf 231k]

Tables and Graphs

1. Distribution of Work-Related Fatalities by Industry Sector [156k]
2. Selected Demographic Characteristics by Leading Industry Sector [pdf 141k]

Leading industry sectors are as follows:

a.  Construction Sector (NAICS 23):

Highlights, 1990-2013:

• Total number of fatalities: 532
• 530 were male
• 83% were White, non-Hispanic and 8% were Black, non-Hispanic
• 20% were of Hispanic origin
• 16% were foreign-born
• 87% were residents of New Jersey
• Age at death ranged from 17-85 years; the average age was 43 years; 58% were younger than 45 years of age

Table and Graphs - Construction Sector:

1. Number and Rate [pdf 251k]
2. Industry Subsector [pdf 267k]
3. Major Occupational Group [pdf 324k]
4. Type of Incident [pdf 283k]

b. Transportation and Warehousing Sector (NAICS 48-49):

Highlights, 1990-2013:

• Total number of fatalities: 391
• 383 were male
• 67% were White, non-Hispanic and 20% were Black, non-Hispanic
• 16% were of Hispanic origin
• 18% were foreign-born
• 69% were residents of New Jersey
• Age at death ranged from 18-82 years; the average age was 46 years; 46% were younger than 45 years of age

Tables and Graphs – Transportation and Warehousing Sector:

1. Number and Rate [pdf 368k]
2. Industry Subsector [pdf 455k]
3. Major Occupation Group [pdf 324k]
4. Type of Incident [pdf 287k]

c. Administrative & Support and Waste Management & Remediation Services Sector:

Highlights, 1990-2013:

• Total number of fatalities: 204
• 202 were male
• 74% were White, non-Hispanic and 14% were Black, non-Hispanic
• 27% were of Hispanic origin
• 18% were foreign-born
• 87% were residents of New Jersey
• Age at death ranged from 18-73 years; the average age was 39 years; 67% were younger than 45 years of age

Tables and Graphs – Administrative & Support and Waste Management & Remediation Services Sector:

1. Number and Rate [pdf 292k]
2. Industry Subsector [pdf 360k]
3. Major Occupational Group [pdf 382k]
4. Type of Incident [pdf 292k]

Tables and Graphs

1. Top Five Occupational Groups [pdf 161k]
2. Occupation Groups with Greater than 20 Fatalities [pdf 340k]
3. Public Employees:

Highlights, 1990-2013:

• Total number of public employee fatalities: 261
• 230 were male
• 82% were White, non-Hispanic and 14% were Black, non-Hispanic
• 7% were of Hispanic origin
• 3% were foreign-born
• 93% were residents of New Jersey
• Age at death ranged from 18-82 years; the average age was 44 years; 54% were younger than
  45 years of age

Table and Graphs – Public Employees:

1. Leading Industry Sectors [pdf 315k]
2. Leading Industry Sectors/Subsectors [pdf 322k]
3. Major Occupational Group [pdf 208k]
4. Leading Occupational Groups/Subgroups [pdf 142k]

Related Publications in the Scientific Literature (co-authored by staff of the NJDOH Occupational Health Surveillance Unit)

1. Borjan M, Patel T, Lefkowitz D, Campbell C, Lumia M. Assessing Barriers to the Use of Fall Protection in Small Residential Construction Companies in New Jersey. New Solut. 2015 Oct 13.
2. Wuellner S, Walters JK, St. Louis T, Leinenkugel K, Rogers PF, Lefkowitz D, Davis TK, Gelberg K, Zak MJ, and Castillo DN. Nonfatal Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Among Older Workers -- United States, 2009. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2011 Apr 29;60(16):503-8.
3. Day E, Lefkowitz D, Marshall E, Hovinga M. Utilizing United States Coast Guard data to calculate incidence rates and identify risk factors for occupational fishing injuries in New Jersey. J Agromedicine 2010; 15:4, 357-362.
4. McGreevy K, Lefkowitz D, Valiante D, Lipsitz S. Utilizing hospital discharge data (HD) to compare fatal and non-fatal work-related injuries among Hispanic workers in New Jersey. Am J Ind Med 2010; 53:146-152.
5. Cierpich H, Styles L, Harrison R, Davis L, Chester D, Lefkowitz D, Valiante D, Richardson S, Castillo D, Romano N, Baron S. Work-Related Injury Deaths Among Hispanics - United States, 1992–2006. MMWR (2008): Vol. 57 / No. 22. Also in JAMA. 2008;300(21):2479-2480.
6. Higgins D, Casini V, Bost P, Johnson W, Rautiainen R. The Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program’s role in the prevention of occupational fatalities. Injury Prevention 2001;7 (Suppl I):i27-33.
7. Roché LM. Economic cost of occupational injury fatalities in New Jersey in 1992. Economic cost of occupational injury fatalities in New Jersey in 1992 March 1995:1-5.
8. Sorock G, Smith E, Hall N. An evaluation of New Jersey's hospital discharge databases for surveillance of severe occupational injuries. Am J Ind Med 1993, 23:439-448.
9. Sorock G, Stanbury MJ. Workers' compensation data add to fatal injury census. (Letter) Am J Public Health 1991, 81:1678.
10. Stanbury MJ, Goldoft M. Use of OSHA inspection data for fatal occupational injury surveillance in New Jersey. Am J Public Health 1990; 80:200-202.
11. Stanbury MJ, Goldoft M, O'Leary K. Traumatic occupational fatalities in New Jersey: recording of fatal cases in employer's OSHA 200 Logs. In counting injuries and illnesses in the workplace: proposals for a better system ed. E.S. Pollack and D.G. Keiming, National Academy Press, Washington D.C., pp. 141-150, 1987.