Report ranks New Hampshire as second-safest state for workers
AFL-CIO analysis says there were 1.5 deaths per 100,000 workers in NH; nationally the rate is 3.5 deaths
New Hampshire was the second-safest state for workers in America in 2019, according to a report released by the AFL-CIO.
The report, which is based on data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, found that 11 New Hampshire workers were killed on the job in 2019 and there were 1.5 deaths due to on-the-job injuries per hundred thousand workers in New Hampshire in 2019.
Nationally, 5,333 working people were killed on the job and an estimated 95,000 died from occupational diseases. The overall rate of fatal job injuries in 2019 was 3.5 per 100,000.
The report, titled “Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect,” marks the 30th year the AFL-CIO has produced its findings on the state of safety and health protections for workers in the U.S.
Nationally, the most dangerous industries for workers, according to the report were:
- Agriculture, forestry and fishing and hunting (23.1 deaths per 100,000 workers)
- Mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction (14.6 deaths per 100,000 workers)
- Transportation and warehousing (13.9 deaths per 100,000 workers)
- Construction (9.7 deaths per 100,000 workers)
- Wholesale trade (4.9 deaths per 100,000 workers)
The report also says that Latino workers are at increased risk of work-related deaths, with a fatality rate of 4.2 per 100,000 workers – a sharp increase from recent years. Black workers also are at an increased risk of work-related deaths, with a job fatality rate of 3.6 per 100,000 workers. In fact, the report says, in 2019, 634 Black workers died — the highest number in more than two decades.
In addition, the report points out, workers 65 or older have nearly three times the risk of dying on the job than all workers, with a fatality rate of 9.4 per 100,000 workers in 2019.
