From engineers and pilots to roofers and farmers, many people in New Jersey and across the country are killed in a workplace accident. According to a report published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, during 2014, almost 5,000 fatal work injuries occurred around the country.
Regarding the most treacherous occupations in the United States for 2014, the logging industry was at the top. According to the BLS, more than 110 loggers per 100,000 lost their lives on the job. Some of the daily dangers loggers face are rough territory and falling tree limbs. Also, because of where the job is located, injured loggers are not in close proximity to a hospital, which complicates matters. The second riskiest occupation on a per capita basis was fishing. In 2014, there were 80 fatal injuries to occur per every 100,000 fishers and other fishing workers.
While the report ranks pilots and engineers, roofers and refuse collectors as the next three most dangerous occupations for 2014, the occupations are placed in the order of fatality rates per 100,000 workers. Therefore, other larger occupations had higher numbers of deaths among workers. For example, 880 sales and truck drivers, and 270 people involved in the farming industry were fatally injured on the job in 2014.
Because accidents can occur at any workplace for a variety of reasons, most employers are required to have workers’ compensation insurance coverage. The surviving family members of a fatal work accident victim might want to speak with an attorney in order to learn the scope of death benefits that may be available.
Source: TIME, “The Most Dangerous Jobs in America”, David Johnson, May 13, 2016
