Working Kills 54K Americans Each Year

11 people die every day on the job; thousands more die from getting sick there
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 31, 2014 11:40 AM CDT
Working Kills 54K Americans Each Year
A construction worker, covered against the heat, measures on the roof of a new-construction home in Edmond, Okla., on July 24, 2014.   (AP Photo)

If you've ever muttered under your breath, "This $%&* job is seriously going to kill me," you might actually be right. An average of 11 US workers die every day (yes, every single day) on the job, and another 50,000 or so die each year from illnesses caught in the workplace, the US Department of Labor reports. Even if you escape death while filing those TPS reports, it's worth noting that each year another 400,000 get sicknesses at work, while 5 million or so are injured, the DOL adds. According to the National Safety Council's "Injury Facts 2014" report, the most dangerous jobs aren't surprising—agriculture, mining, construction, transportation, and warehousing—but a hefty number of desk-job folks are vulnerable to death risks at work as well, MarketWatch reports.

But what exactly kills people once they punch in? Transportation accidents make up 39.5% of workplace deaths, with the No. 1 cause being car accidents—about 2,000 workers died this way in 2011, according to figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Additional causes of death include violence and other injuries by people or animals (17.1%); contact with objects and equipment (16.3%); slips, trips, and falls (15.9%); and exposure to harmful substances or environments (7.5%). Despite all this info and what we said earlier, though, you're probably not right in thinking you'll die behind your desk: The number of workers who've perished at work has declined overall since 1992, with only 3.2 workers per every 100,000 kicking the bucket last year. (But here are more jobs that could kill you, in case you want to avoid them.)

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