Texas leads the nation in on-the-job deaths

Posted by Bruce Westbrook

August 21, 2008

From their state’s bigness to its boldness, Texans can take pride in many things. But with size also come large statistical numbers — and often unpleasant ones. That’s certainly the case for job fatalities, for which Texas now clearly leads the nation.

Figures released Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics reveal that Texas had more on-the-job deaths in 2007 than any other state: 527. And those can’t just be blamed on Texas’ enormous size.

Indeed, while America as a whole was having a 6 per cent drop in job deaths from the previous year of 2006, Texas was having an 8 per cent increase in job deaths. And Texas’ job deaths represent 10 per cent of those nationwide, even though Texas has less than 8 per cent of the nation’s population.

Not all of the major job death categories were closely applicable to Texas. Despite East Texas’ pines, Texas isn’t known as a logging state, and logging was one of America’s three most dangerous job types last year, along with fishing and commercial pilot flying.

But construction jobs also remain dangerous, and Texas has plenty of those — not to mention commercial pilots and fishing off the Texas coast. Construction accidents, in fact, have been prevalent this year as well, including a construction crane collapse in Houston which claimed four lives. Highway construction accidents also are a steady threat.

In all, 5,488 people died on the job in America last year. That’s 3.7 people per 100,000 and the fewest since 1992, when the BLS started compiling such statistics.

On the downside, America had 610 murders on the job last year, for an increase of 13 per cent. So while the jobs themselves may be getting a bit safer, employees with a grudge are partially cancelling that out.

Wednesday’s BLS report was preliminary; final figures won’t be released until next April. Apparently compiling statistics is a safe enough job that the bureau can afford to take its time.

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