If you’re in a leadership role, it’s essential to implement safety considerations that take age into account, so you can keep your employees safe on the job.
Statistics released yesterday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showed that workplace fatalities declined by less than one percent in 2017. The BLS’ 2017 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries noted that 5,147 fatal injuries were reported last year, as compared to 5,190 in 2016. The fatality rate among full-time workers was also down slightly.
Warning comes in advance of Workers’ Memorial Day, which honors those who have died on the job
April 27, 2018
In recognition of Workers’ Memorial Day on April 28, the National Safety Council is drawing attention to six areas of safety concern for U.S. employees.
“Workers’ Memorial Day is a time to remember those who lost their lives on the job, to reflect on lessons learned and to bolster our commitment to worker safety,” said Mark P. Vergnano, chairman of the National Safety Council Board and president and CEO of The Chemours Company.
In the unlikely event that anyone out there was thinking that workplace fatalities were fading into the past, check out the newest Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries that was released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics today. According to BLS, 5,190 fatal work injuries died on the job in 2016, a 7-percent increase from the 4,836 fatal injuries reported in 2015 and the third year in a row the number has increased.
One of the real head-scratchers in the realm of workplace safety is the reality that such a large percentage of accidents, especially serious ones, happen to experienced workers.
It’s a fact: our workforce is aging. By 2024, nearly 1 in 4 people in the labor force are projected to be age 55 or over.
This is a big change from 1994, when people ages 55 and older represented only 11.9 percent of the labor force – a share smaller than those held by other age groups: 16-24, 25-34, 35-44 and 45-54. But by 2024, their projected share will be the largest among these age groups.
Europe is launching an initiative entitled, “Healthy Workplaces for All Ages,” to promote sustainable work and healthy aging from the beginning of working life to retirement.
In recent years, the issue of the aging workforce in the U.S. has been a staple education session at safety and health meetings. So too this week at ASSE’s Safety 2013, which featured a session on, “So You’re Retired? Not So Fast - Attacking Injuries of an Aging Workforce.” According to a recent AARP study, 70 percent of workers report they plan to work past retirement or never retire.
