The AFL-CIO marked the 44th anniversary of the implementation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) by releasing a report showing that nearly 150 workers lose their lives across the United States each day.
Entitled Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect, the document notes 4,585 men and women were killed because of workplace injuries during 2013. In addition, approximately 50,000 died from occupational diseases during the same period, resulting in the loss of about 150 workers each day from preventable workplace conditions.
“America’s workers shouldn’t have to choose between earning a livelihood and risking their life, yet every day too many end up on the wrong side of that choice,” stated AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka upon releasing the report on April 29, the day after Workers Memorial Day. “We must go beyond mourning those we’ve lost and take bold, decisive action to ensure that a day’s work brings opportunity, not the risk of death or injury.”
Workers Memorial Day is held on the anniversary of the 1971 effective date for OSHA.
The compilation marks the 24th year that the AFL-CIO has produced its findings on safety and health protections for American workers. It noted the highest workplace fatality rates were located in North Dakota, Alaska, Wyoming, West Virginia and New Mexico.
The full report can be found at www.aflcio.org/death-on-the-job.