Work-related Fatalities Research Articles

Agricultural Work-Related Fatalities to Non-Working Youth: Implications for Intervention Development.

This article presents data for agricultural work-related fatal injuries to non-working youth (> 18 years old) in Pennsylvania. Cases were identified from the Pennsylvania Farm Fatality (PA-FF) database for the period 2000-2018. The circumstances of the death in each incident were reviewed from news clippings, death certificates, and other reports available to determine the victim's status as a bystander, passenger, or other non-working child. The study identified 69 agricultural work-related fatalities to non-working youth in Pennsylvania. Incidents were coded as non-working accomplice (26), non-working accomplice extra rider (14), non-working attendant (25), and ambiguous (4). Fatalities to children > 5 years old accounted for 74% of the non-working youth fatalities, and most (75%) of the victims were male. Plain Sect community members (Anabaptists) comprised 78% of the cases. Children contribute significantly to the overall burden of agricultural work-related fatal injuries in Pennsylvania, especially as bystanders. From the review of the data, we conclude that fatal injuries to non-working children on farms are preventable. The process of identifying different injury patterns associated with non-work-related child activity has increased our understanding of how safety professionals and community members may help prevent these fatalities. Many researchers have noted a variety of intervention efforts that show potential for providing safer farm and home environments but will need long-term commitments in various capacities.

The relationships among roadway safety management practices, collision rates, and injury rates within company fleets

Motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) are consistently the leading cause of work-related fatalities for all industries combined. They comprise the majority of workplace fatalities for occupations involved in transportation/material moving and are one of the leading causes of death for many occupations which involve driving, but where driving is not the primary job duty. Nonfatal work-related MVCs also have substantial injury and economic consequences for workers and employers. This study used data from 70 companies from a range of industries to assess the relationship between companies’ self-reported fleet safety management practices/policies and collision/injury metrics. Several practices were found to be statistically significantly related to collision/injury metrics, including mobile phone record checking, fatigue mitigation practices, provision of driver training, and collision response procedures. Implications of these findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Environmental Factor, Education & Training and PPE Impact on Safety Performance: A Study Among Construction Workers at SESCO Sub-station, Balingian, Sarawak

Safety and health at workplace is an emergent concern in almost all parts of the world including developing countries such as Malaysia. Construction industry is one of the most hazardous industries with regard to work-related injury and fatality rates. Impact on the company would include loss working hours of injured employee, cost of repair and replacement of property and damages as well as increment in insurance premium. The purpose of the study is intended to examine the relationship between factors with safety performance at construction sites. This study investigates whether factors such as working environment, education & training, PPE and weather have any influence on safety performance. The study was conducted among construction workers at Sesco Sub-Station, Balingian, and Sarawak. A set of validated questionnaires were distributed to 100 construction workers. Data were examined based on 95 returned questionnaires (respond rate 95%). Data were analyzed with SPSS version 22 using descriptive and inferential statistics. Pearson’s correlation coefficient was used to measure the strength of relationship between independent and dependent variables. It was concluded that the most important factor affecting safety performance of the construction workers at SESCO Sub-Station, Balingian, and Sarawak is PPE.

The impact of macroeconomic and industrial fluctuation on fatalities of construction workers in China

Objective: This study explores the relationship between fluctuation in economic and industrial development and work-related fatalities of Chinese construction workers. Methods: The data for work-related fatalities in housing and civil engineering in China from 1996 to 2016 were tested for fluctuation and trends of both general economic and industry-specific indicators using the Engle-Granger cointegration analysis and the augmented Granger Causality test the with modified Wald method. Results: Both the long-run equilibrium associations and short-run dynamic interactions between construction safety and macroeconomic development in China were determined. According to the estimates, fatalities in the construction industry appeared to be more significantly associated with changes in the gross output value of the industry, and the improvement in the workers' efficiency also contributed to the decline of fatalities. It initially revealed that the changes in growth rate, instead of growth itself, had a more significant influence on construction safety in China, while a marginal decreasing trend of positive effects exerted by the growth can be expected with the gradual maturity of the industry. Significance: The application of econometrical methods explored an untapped data source for gaining an insight into the underlying rules of occurrence of construction fatalities, thus strengthening the body of knowledge of construction safety by providing a new research perspective that some safety indicators can be treated as the macro-level socioeconomic index. Practical applications: The findings reminded policymakers and practitioners to be aware of potential challenges from the slowing or even declining trend facing the industry in the near future, and offered a reference to relevant authorities for establishing a more targeted and effective governance strategy.

Summary of Indiana Farm Fatalities Involving Individuals 55 Years and Older—1988–2017

Agriculture has historically been one of the most hazardous of all occupations, with a variety of potential safety risks to workers and even higher risks documented for older agricultural workers. This study was undertaken to document and summarize Indiana farm work-related fatalities involving persons 55 years and older over the 30 year period from 1988 to 2017. Data were mined from the Purdue University Agricultural Safety and Health Program’s Fatality Database that dates back to the 1960s. A total of 388 fatalities involving persons 55 years and older was documented. The average age of the victims was 69.3 years old, and an overwhelming majority of the cases involved males (96.1%). The average number of deaths per year has remained fairly consistent, though it has occasionally been erratic, with an unanticipated increase in the number of documented fatalities over the period 2012–2017. There appeared to be a direct positive correlation between the level or intensity of agricultural production in a county and the frequency of fatalities. The type of fatal injury most commonly reported was crush/run-over, with 229 cases (59%). The most common agent or source of injury involved was tractors, with 157 cases (40.5%). Another noted contributing factor was the high frequency of incidents in which the victim was reported to be working alone at the time of death. Findings will be used to develop evidence-based injury prevention strategies, including the development of agricultural safety training materials and methods more relevant to older farmers. A special emphasis should be placed on reducing the risk of tractor and farm machinery overturns, especially when older, non-roll over protection structure (ROPS) equipped tractors are being operated.

Analytical observational study of nonfatal motor vehicle collisions and incidents in a light-vehicle sales and service fleet

Motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) are a significant cause of lost-workday injuries, and consistently the leading cause of work-related fatalities in the United States for all industries combined. Prevention research has focused mainly on collisions fatal to the drivers of large trucks. This analytical observational study addresses gaps in the literature by: conducting a descriptive analysis of motor vehicle claim events involving light-vehicle drivers in a large health care industry fleet; identifying risk factors for work-related MVCs and injuries based on vehicle miles traveled; and providing details on circumstances of these events.The study examined 8068 motor vehicle events resulting in vehicle damage, property damage, or injury reported by 6680 U.S.-based drivers in a light-vehicle sales and service fleet operated by a health care company over a 4 ½-year period (January 2010 through June 2014). Thirty-three percent (n = 2660) of the events were collisions. Collisions were segmented as recoverable or non-recoverable according to whether the company could recover costs from another party, and mileage-based collision and injury rates were calculated by gender, age, tenure, and vehicle type. Differences in collision and injury rates between groups of interest (for example, tenure and age categories) were assessed with Poisson regression techniques adjusted using generalized estimating equations (GEE) for repeated observations on the same employee over time.Age, gender, and job tenure were significant collision risk factors, and risk patterns for recoverable and non-recoverable collisions were similar to those for total collisions. Collisions per million miles (CPMM) were significantly higher for drivers 21–24.9 years of age compared to drivers age 25–54.9 years (9.58 CPMM vs 4.96 CPMM, p = .025), drivers employed for less than 2 years compared to those employed 2 or more years (6.22 CPMM vs 4.82 CPMM, p < .001), for female drivers compared to male drivers (6.37 CPMM vs 4.16 CPMM, p < .001), and for drivers of passenger cars compared to all other vehicles (5.27 CPMM vs 4.48 CPMM, p < .001). Among collisions between the employee’s vehicle and another vehicle in transport, those where the front of one vehicle hit another vehicle at an angle were the most likely to result in injury to the employee driver or another party (26%), followed by rear-end collisions (25%). Special attention should be given to preventing collisions among newly-hired employees, and to preventing angle and rear-end collisions, which were the most common types of collisions and also were most likely to result in injury than all other collisions combined.

Burden, Need and Impact: An Evidence-Based Method to Identify Worker Safety and Health Research Priorities.

The importance of research and recommendations to address workforce safety and health derives from the continuing toll from worker fatalities, injuries, and illnesses. Estimates of the societal cost of work-related fatalities, injuries, and illnesses range up to $2.2 trillion in the USA from 2007 to 2015, which may be an underestimate of total societal costs. The ongoing changes in the nature of work, the workforce, and the workplace in the USA challenge old paradigms of worker safety and health research and require new decision criteria that are more solution oriented than observational and that result in interventions that can be readily applied to new occupational hazards and exposures. As public funding for science research programs becomes more constrained, and the demand for increased accountability of government spending grows, the need to demonstrate the impact or return on taxpayers' investment becomes a necessity for research agencies. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has developed an evidence-based method that uses the criteria of 'burden', 'need', and 'impact' to identify research priorities and aid in the evaluation of the taxpayers' investment in research. This approach, named the BNI method, may be useful to other public and private sector research agencies or entities that need a systematic way to set research priorities and allocate increasingly scarce resources for research while ensuring the maximal return on investment.

Pythagorean fuzzy VIKOR-based approach for safety risk assessment in mine industry

Introduction: Underground mining is considered one of the most hazardous industries and is often associated with serious work-related fatalities; this paper addresses job-related hazards and associated risks. Method: A risk assessment approach is proposed (Pythagorean fuzzy environment) and a case study is carried out in an underground copper and zinc mine. Results: Results of the study demonstrate that hazards can be categorized into different risk levels via compromised solutions of the fuzzy approach. Conclusion: The study provides a theoretical contribution by suggesting a Pythagorean fuzzy numbers-based VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (PFVIKOR) approach. Moreover, it contributes to improving overall safety levels of underground mining by considering and advising on the potential hazards of risk management. Practical applications: The proposed approach will improve the existing safety risk assessment mechanism in underground copper and zinc mining.

Factors leading to unsafe behavior in the twenty first century workplace: a review

Work-related injuries, diseases and fatalities have received considerable attention by researchers and have led to a greater awareness about incident causation in the workplace. Most accidents and injuries emanating from workplaces are attributed to workers’ unsafe behaviors, which are also a reflection of system deficiency and hazardous work-environment. The purpose of this review was to investigate the factors contributing to workers’ unsafe behaviors. A review of 70 major empirical studies on unsafe behaviors was conducted within occupational safety and health research, and thereafter clustered into eight job domains namely: construction, healthcare, informal sector enterprises, manufacturing, mining, energy, agriculture, and multi-dimensional context. The results across these domains were reported and compared, along with their consequences and solutions. The study found that lack of adequate knowledge on safety and health, violation of safety rules, work pressure, stress and non-use of protective equipment were the main factors of unsafe behaviors. Several major solutions to these behaviors were highlighted for consideration by practitioners and policy developers. The outcomes from this review will assist safety managers in understanding how to motivate employees/workers to engage in proper safety practices.

Have we reached the organisational ceiling? a review of applied accident causation models, methods and contributing factors in construction

Work-related fatalities continue to represent a significant issue within the construction industry. Contemporary accident causation models are underpinned by systems thinking, however, it is unclear whether these theories have translated into the construction domain. This article presents the findings of a review that was conducted to determine if the construction accident analysis literature has applied a systems thinking approach to understand accident causation. Specifically, the review examined two key aspects: first the types of models and methods that have been applied to analyse construction incidents, and second, the types of contributing factors identified as playing a role in construction incidents. The findings are summarised using Rasmussen’s Risk Management Framework. The review revealed that contemporary models of accident causation have not yet been applied in construction-related research. It is concluded that the models and methods applied in the construction literature predominantly identify contributing factors associated with the company, management, and frontline work levels of the system, rather than considering broader, system-wide factors. Further, the relationships between individuals and organisations operating at each level of the system have not been typically examined. Further research underpinned by systems thinking is required to better understand accident causation in the construction domain.HighlightsThe review revealed that contemporary models of accident causation have not yet been applied in construction-related research;The models and methods applied in the construction literature predominantly identify contributing factors associated with the company, management, and front line work levels of the system, rather than considering broader, system-wide factors;Relationships between individuals and organisations operating at each level of the system have not yet been examined;Despite the efforts of regulators and construction entities, the consistently high rate of fatal accidents in construction highlights the challenges surrounding the practical management of safe production within complex and dynamic working environments;Accident analysis methods used in this industry have not kept pace with advances in the field of safety science.

End-users’ perspectives on safety risks in different high-hazard industries

Despite many improvements over the last century, serious injuries and work-related fatalities remain a significant global challenge in different high-hazard industries. Further reductions in incidents should happen with improved risk identification and control which relies on human perception and decision making. It is important to understand end-user perspectives in order to identify and design effective risk management artefacts. This paper discusses four studies of different high-hazard industry worker populations (agriculture, oil and gas, boardroom and industrial contracting) that were conducted to understand risk management practices and opportunities in different environments. The work demonstrates that it is possible to identify novel insights directly from end-users that can assist in prioritizing and clarifying further risk improvement opportunities and research needs.

Fatal Falls Overboard in Commercial Fishing - United States, 2000-2016.

Commercial fishing is one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States, with a 2016 work-related fatality rate (86.0 deaths per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers) 23 times higher than that for all U.S. workers (3.6) (1). Sinking vessels cause the most fatalities in the industry; however, falling from a fishing vessel is a serious hazard responsible for the second highest number of commercial fishing-associated fatalities (2,3). CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) analyzed data on unintentional fatal falls overboard in the U.S. commercial fishing industry to identify gaps in the use of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention strategies. During 2000-2016, a total of 204 commercial fishermen died after unintentionally falling overboard. The majority of falls (121; 59.3%) were not witnessed, and 108 (89.3%) of these victims were not found. Among 83 witnessed falls overboard, 56 rescue attempts were made; 22 victims were recovered but were not successfully resuscitated. The circumstances, rescue attempts, and limited use of lifesaving and recovery equipment indicate that efforts to reduce these preventable fatalities are needed during pre-event, event, and post-event sequences of falls overboard. Vessel owners could consider strategies to prevent future fatalities, including lifeline tethers, line management, personal flotation devices (PFDs), man-overboard alarms, recovery devices, and rescue training.

Fatal work-related falls in the United States, 2003-2014.

Falls are the second leading cause of work-related fatalities among US workers. We describe fatal work-related falls from 2003 to 2014, including demographic, work, and injury event characteristics, and changes in rates over time. We identified fatal falls from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries and estimated rates using the BLS Current Population Survey. From 2003 to 2014, there were 8880 fatal work-related falls, at an annual rate of 5.5 per million FTE. Rates increased with age. Occupations with the highest rates included construction/extraction (42.2 per million FTE) and installation/maintenance/repair (12.5 per million FTE). Falls to a lower level represented the majority (n = 7521, 85%) compared to falls on the same level (n = 1128, 13%). Falls are a persistent source of work-related fatalities. Fall prevention should continue to focus on regulation adherence, Prevention through Design, improving fall protection, training, fostering partnerships, and increasing communication.

The Influence of Masculine Norms and Occupational Factors on Mental Health: Evidence From the Baseline of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health.

Men employed in male-dominated occupations are at elevated risk of work-related fatalities, injuries, and suicide. Prior research has focused on associations between psychosocial and physical exposures at work and health outcomes. However, masculine norms may also contribute to mental health. We used data from the baseline survey of the Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health to examine whether: (a) men in male-dominated jobs report greater adherence to masculine norms; (b) being in a male-dominated occupation is associated with poorer mental health; and (c) being in a male-dominated occupation modifies the association between masculine norms and mental health. Masculine norms were measured using the Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory (CMNI-22). Mental health was assessed using the SF-12. Results of regression analysis (adjusted for covariates) suggest a linear relationship between the extent to which an occupation is male-dominated and endorsement of values on the CMNI-22. Many CMNI-22 subscales were related to poorer mental health. However, the need for self-reliance was identified as the strongest predictor of poorer mental health. The mental health scale did not appear to be patterned by occupational gender composition and we did not find an interaction between the gender ratio of an occupation and the CNMI-22 scale. These findings highlight the need to address harmful aspects of masculinity as a potential cause of mental health problems. More longitudinal research is needed on the social domains in which gender and health are experienced, such as in the workplace.

Work-related injuries and fatalities in the geotechnical site works.

Geotechnical site works are comprehensive, and they constitute the first step of the construction process. This study performs data mining of geotechnical works and analyzes the database for the root causes of accidents. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was chosen for the 1984–2013 time frame with 247 cases. Descriptive statistical analyses were performed to discuss variables such as the end use of the work, project type and cost, soil type and condition, type and degree of injury, cause and type of accident, unsafe acts, and occupation and union status of the victim. The results showed that these accidents have a high frequency of recurrence and have a high severity level (54.3% fatalities). In addition, a total of 838 violations were recorded with penalties reaching 5 million US dollars. This study emphasizes that project-specific countermeasures should be taken regarding the root causes of accidents, leading to vigorous strategies to develop safety measures.

Stability Analysis of Agricultural Off-Road Vehicles.

Vehicle rollovers cause many agricultural work-related fatalities each year. Tractors, off-road utility vehicles (ORUVs), zero turn radius (ZTR) mowers, and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) can all become involved in fatal rollovers. The rollover tendency of these vehicles was evaluated using static lateral and longitudinal stability angles. Center of gravity locations were measured with the lift axle method, and lateral and longitudinal stability angles were calculated for four ATVs, five ORUVs, four ZTR mowers, and four lawn tractors. Stability angles were calculated for loaded and unloaded vehicle conditions. Loading vehicles with ballast and operators can substantially decrease lateral and longitudinal stability angles. Stability angles for these vehicles and for five full-size agricultural tractors were compared. All loaded and unloaded, lateral and longitudinal stability angles determined met the appropriate ANSI requirements.

Assessing on-site construction personnel hazard perception in a Middle Eastern developing country: An interactive graphical approach

The construction industry is unarguably one of the most dangerous industries contributing to a high percentage of work-related injuries and fatalities. Despite various attempts at ensuring compliance with health and safety regulations and maintaining a safe working environment, the construction personnel attitude on jobsites remains one of the direct reasons behind reducing accidents. Therefore, assessing the hazard perception of the construction workforce is a substantial step in enhancing on-site safety management, especially in developing countries where construction safety is still at its infancy. In Lebanon, a Middle Eastern developing country, the construction industry has been characterized by an overall poor safety performance. Hence, the objective of this paper is to assess the awareness and perception of engineers, foremen and workers on the severity of various indoor hazardous activities and the importance of hardhat use through conducting a computer-based graphical interactive survey on different construction sites in Lebanon. Results revealed: (1) deficiencies in hazard perception among construction personnel, varying according to SHMS adoption by contractors, site characteristics, years of experience, and job position as well as (2) how the main incentive behind wearing a hardhat is actually having faced past incidents in lieu of self-motivation. The study findings together with recommendations issued for enhancing on-site construction personnel hazard and safety perception could be of significance to other regional developing countries.

Non-intentional farm injury fatalities in NSW, Australia, 2001-2015.

Agriculture is one of the most hazardous industries in Australia. The Australian Centre for Agricultural Health and Safety is the only agency that records all non-intentional injury-related events (work and nonwork) on Australian farms. Drawing on records from the National Coronial Information System, data for New South Wales (NSW), Australia, were analysed to assess cases in the 2001-2015 period. Each case was reviewed in accordance with the Farm Injury Optimal Dataset to ascertain gender, age, work relatedness and causal agents. The location of each incident was also mapped by Statistical Area Level 4. Denominator data on the number of agricultural establishments in each area and the number of workers involved in agriculture across all of NSW were sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Two-piece linear regressions using 2007 as the change point were completed to ascertain trends for the work-related cases and all deaths (work and nonwork). Differences in rates of all deaths by regions were assessed using Poisson regression models. Results indicate no change in the rate of work-related deaths per 100 000 workers over the 15-year period (mean 17.3). Although there was a statistically significant reduction in all deaths (work and nonwork) per 10 000 farms through to 2007, the rate has remained stable since this time. There was no significant variation in the all-deaths rate (work and nonwork) between any of the geographic areas. Study limitations included estimations based on ABS data for the distribution of farms, the lack of data by statistical area on agricultural worker numbers and a case closure rate of 87%. There has been no improvement in work-related fatality rates in the sector in NSW for at least 15 years, and similarly no improvement in the all-injury fatality rate (work and nonwork) since 2007. Data in this study can be used to strengthen investment and revitalise the adoption of evidence based approaches that address relevant issues.

Wearable technology for personalized construction safety monitoring and trending: Review of applicable devices

Abstract The construction process is considered a very risky endeavor because of the high frequency of work-related injuries and fatalities. The collection and analysis of safety data is an important element in measurement and improvement strategy development. The adoption of wearable technology has the potential for a result-oriented data collection and analysis approach to providing real-time information to construction personnel. The objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of the applications of wearable technology for personalized construction safety monitoring. The characteristics of wearable devices and safety metrics thought to be capable of predicting safety performance and management practices are identified and analyzed. The review indicates that the existing wearable technologies applied in other industrial sectors can be used to monitor and measure a wide variety of safety performance metrics within the construction industry. Benefits of individual wearable sensors or systems can be integrated based on their attributes for multi-parameter monitoring of safety performance.

The construction FACE database — Codifying the NIOSH FACE reports

IntroductionThe National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has published reports detailing the results of investigations on selected work-related fatalities through the Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) program since 1982. MethodInformation from construction-related FACE reports was coded into the Construction FACE Database (CFD). Use of the CFD was illustrated by analyzing major CFD variables. ResultsA total of 768 construction fatalities were included in the CFD. Information on decedents, safety training, use of PPE, and FACE recommendations were coded. Analysis shows that one in five decedents in the CFD died within the first two months on the job; 75% and 43% of reports recommended having safety training or installing protection equipment, respectively. ConclusionComprehensive research using FACE reports may improve understanding of work-related fatalities and provide much-needed information on injury prevention. Practical ApplicationThe CFD allows researchers to analyze the FACE reports quantitatively and efficiently.