Lost-worktime cases continue to fall

The number of injuries and illnesses reported by private industry declined to 1.664 million in 2000 from 1.703 million in 1999, the United States Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics announced recently in a research report.

Reported injuries and illnesses have steadily declined since 1992, when the bureau began this multi-faceted statistical series. For a reference point, 2.237 million injury and illness cases were reported in 1994, 573,000 more than in 2000.

The manufacturing industry has helped fuel the upbeat trend. Illnesses and injuries reported by manufacturing companies totaled 376,600 during 2000 — an improvement of 27,000 from 1999, when 403,600 cases were reported, and 53,000 from 1998, when 429,600 cases were reported.

Manufacturing industry cases comprised 22.6 percent of all private industry cases in 2000, compared with 23.6 percent in 1999 and 24.8 percent in 1998.

The statistical improvements are important for the manufacturing industry because healthy workers are more productive, and time off for injured or ill workers can be lengthy.

For manufacturing, 20.1 percent of all cases in 2000 required the injured or ill worker to miss 31 or more days of work (compared with 19.3 in 1999). A total of 38.7 percent of cases kept the worker out at least 11 days (37.1 in 1999). The average time away from work was six days.

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) accounted for 37.1 percent of all manufacturing-related cases (37.7 in 1999). These injuries, on average, led to an eight-day absence. General laborers and assemblers reported 31,000 and 17,200 MSD cases, respectively.

MSDs are defined as an injury or disorder of the muscles, nerves, tendons, joints, cartilage or spinal discs. They don’t include disorders caused by slips, trips, falls or similar accidents.

Carpal tunnel syndrome and tendonitis, which could fall under the heading of repetitive motion disorders, comprised 16,700 (4.4 percent) of total manufacturing injuries and illnesses in 2000.

Other telling manufacturing statistics from the BLS report include:

• The average manufacturing worker reporting an injury or illness in 2000 was a white, non-Hispanic (53.2 percent) male (74.6 percent) with less than five years of job experience (57.4 percent).
• Operators and fabricators were most likely to report an injury or illness (72.6 percent).
• Workers age 24 or younger reported 45,569 injuries/illnesses.
• Approximately 145,100 reported injuries were the result of sprains or strains (38.5 percent).
• Body parts most affected by injuries or illnesses were the back (21.1 percent), finger (12.8), wrist (6.5), knee (6.3) and shoulder (6.3).

“Today’s announcement is more good news for workers, their families and their employers,” said U.S Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao. “The number of workers with injuries and illnesses requiring time away from work edged down, continuing the steady drop since 1992.”

Chao also touched on ergonomic injuries, an issue the Occupational Safety and Health Administration addressed April 5 with a formal ergonomics plan and April 10 with the appointment of 10 regional ergonomic coordinators.

“More work is needed in reducing . . . injuries resulting from repetitive motion,” said Chao. “While the number of workers suffering musculoskeletal disorders has continued to drop, we are determined to accelerate that decline and reduce both the number and the rate of these often painful and disabling disorders.”

This article appeared in the April/May 2002 issue of MRO Today magazine. Copyright, 2002.

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