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If a company wants to save money on workers’ compensation insurance, it must limit compensable injuries among its personnel. Employers may improve their claims history by limiting injuries, which can cut their rates and, in certain cases, win discounts from their insurance. We’ve collected a list of the most frequent workplace injuries, along with prevention measures.
Our list is based on the most current statistics from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which estimates that 2.8 million nonfatal workplace accidents occurred in private businesses in 2019. The BLS organizes the data in a variety of ways, including the kind of injury, the size of the company, and the industry. In this post, we’ll look at the events that lead to injuries, particularly those that result in lost workdays, since understanding the reason may help you reduce the risk.
This article will teach you about workplace injuries.
1. Excessive effort and the resulting physical response
The BLS categorizes 275,590 incidents as “Excessive effort and the resulting physical response,” making it the most common source of work-related injuries for private companies. It’s easy to see why this exposure is so prevalent when you consider overexertion can be the result of a single event, repetitive motions, or holding a position over a prolonged period. This means an overexertion workplace injury could be caused by:
- On a building site, using tools
- Trucks being loaded
- Typing on a computer keyboard
- Inventory or supplies being lifted
- Working in a production line
- Sitting at a computer
In that light, just about every worker in any industry is exposed to excessive effort and the resulting physical response injuries.
Trade, transportation, and utilities (43.9%), educational and health services (34.4%), and manufacturing (29.1%) are the industries with the greatest incidence rates2.
How To Stay Away From Overexertion Injuries
A strained back or a swollen wrist may not seem like much, but severe instances may need surgery and extensive rehabilitation. While most states require workers’ compensation insurance to cover these injuries, eliminating them minimizes the need for claims and the employment of temporary aid while an injured employee recovers.
You may assist your staff avoid overexertion injuries by doing the following:
- Employees are being educated on proper lifting techniques, such as raising with their knees.
- Using safety belts, back braces, and lift assistance as a requirement
- Employees who work in a certain job for long periods of time should be required to take regular breaks.
- Purchasing ergonomic furniture
- Employees should be encouraged to switch tasks whenever feasible.
2. Slips, trips, and falls
Slip-and-fall incidents are often associated with general liability insurance and third-party claims, but they are also a significant risk for workers. Employees missed work in 244,000 events due to falls, slips, and trips in 2019, according to the BLS.
While a slip-and-fall on a wet floor might result in a workplace accident, other causes of falls, trips, and slips include:
- Surfaces that are uneven
- Tripping dangers.
- Iced-over sidewalks
The construction sector, which experienced 25,460 such accidents at a rate of 35.9 per 10,000 full-time employees, is a particular source of worry. However, falls injured more than 72,000 workers in commerce, transportation, and utilities in 2019, at a rate of 31.4 per 10,000 full-time employees.
Natural resources and mining have the greatest incidence rate2 (32.6); the building has the highest incidence rate (35.9); and trade, transportation, and utilities have the highest incidence rate (31.4).
How to Prevent Slips, Falls, and Trips
Falls, slips, and stumbles that do not result in death generally result in strained muscles and fractured bones, but they may also result in significant brain damage. Furthermore, falls are one of the four Fatal Four in the construction business, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Slips, falls, and trips may be avoided if you take the following precautions:
- Spills should be cleaned as soon as they are discovered.
- After cleaning or spills, use “wet floor” signs.
- Using nonskid tape on stairs or walkways that are often used
- Handrails should be installed where there is a lot of foot activity on the stairs.
- Encourage staff to wear shoes with nonstick soles.
It’s simple to imitate falls, slides, and stumbles. Installing security cameras in work places is one technique to prevent fraudulent workers’ compensation claims.
3. Exposure to things and equipment
Our list of work-related injuries is topped by contact with items or equipment, but only by a hair. According to the BLS, 229,410 accidents fell into this group, accounting for 25.8% of all events vs 27.5 percent for falls, slips, and trips.
It may be difficult to visualize injuries produced by contact with items or equipment, but consider the following scenario:
- A construction worker’s head is struck by a tool.
- A nurse is pricked with a needle.
- A golf cart that has sped away and collided with a golf caddy or groundskeeper.
- The employees below are crushed by a collapsing wall.
While comparable incidents may occur in any business, according to OSHA, heavy machinery is involved in 75 percent of all “struck-by” deaths. Employers in agriculture, manufacturing, and construction must take additional precautions as a result.
Natural resources and mining (43.5%), construction (36.8%), and manufacturing (35.9%) are the industries with the greatest incidence rates2.
How To Prevent Injuries From Object Contact
Faulty equipment and poor safety training are often at the heart of these injuries, but workers’ inattention may also cause accidents. You can reduce injuries from Exposure to things and equipment by making workplace safety part of your business’s culture. For example, you may want to:
- Engage the services of a professional to assess your safety processes.
- Regular occupational safety training should be required.
- Throughout the day, make sure all equipment is secure.
- Loads on motorized vehicles should be kept to a minimum so that the operator has a clear vision.
- Instruct staff on how to wear the proper safety gear.
- Employees that misbehave around machinery, motorized vehicles, or other heavy equipment should be disciplined.
4. Transportation-related mishaps
With 49,430 injuries, Transportation-related mishaps only make up about 5.6% of all nonfatal workplace injuries. However, they caused more worker deaths (2,122) in 2019 than the top three workplace injuries on our list combined (1,612).
Transportation-related mishaps aren’t limited to automobiles. The BLS also includes accidents involving:
- Aircraft
- Railways
- Animals
- Bicycles
- Watercraft
When an employee is injured in an automobile accident, workers’ compensation coverage might be complicated. Employees who were driving in the course of their work, such as delivering deliveries or doing errands for their employer, are usually covered by policies. If they choose to perform a personal errand or commute to work, however, their claim will almost certainly be dismissed.
Trade, transportation, and utilities have the greatest incidence rate2 (9.8%), followed by natural resources and mining (7.7%), and building (5.3%).
How To Avoid Injuries From Transportation-related mishaps
The first step to preventing Transportation-related mishaps, particularly car accidents, is to hire good drivers in the first place. Start by requesting candidates’ driving records from your state’s department of motor vehicles (DMV). Most require the candidate’s signature to release the information.
Following that, you may wish to create a safe-driving program that includes regulations on:
- Use of drugs and alcohol
- Use of a seat belt
- Reporting an accident
- Upkeep of vehicles
- Use of a cellphone
- Pauses for rest
- Training on a regular basis
5. Injuries and Violence Caused by People or Animals
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 44,480 employees were injured by persons or animals. This category encompasses a broad variety of circumstances, including the following:
- Violence in the workplace
- Suicide and other forms of self-harm
- Bites and stings from animals and insects
- Maulings, gorings, and tramplings of animals
Again, not all workplace injuries are covered by workers’ compensation. Medical expenses are normally covered only when workers are injured in the course and scope of their job. As a consequence, deliberate self-harm is typically prohibited, as are injuries resulting from a fight among coworkers—unless the fight is about a working issue.
Educational and health services (14.5%), natural resources and utilities (8.8%), and leisure and hospitality (2.6%) are the industries with the greatest incidence rates2.
How To Avoid Violence in the workplace
Sadly, intentional injury by a person accounts for nearly 47 percent of the incidents categorized by the BLS as Violence in the workplace. Whether such injuries are covered by workers’ comp, preventing them makes sense. Educate yourself and your employees on the warning signs that someone may become violent, including:
- Deterioration in work performance
- Bullying or intimidating conduct
- A visceral response to criticism
- Suicidal remarks or withdrawal
- Unreasonable requests, offensive remarks, or threats verbally
- Disobedience to business policies
- Inability to reconcile disagreements
When you come across an employee who exhibits these or other warning indicators, you must act to both assist the person and safeguard your company and other employees. Begin by keeping track of your contacts with the employee and getting guidance from your HR department or a lawyer on next measures.
If you or your health insurance provider work with an EAP, you may wish to send workers who exhibit any of these warning signals to them. Contact building security or dial 911 if an encounter seems to be escalating.
6. Harmful drug exposure or Environments
The final spot on our list of most common workplace injuries goes to Harmful drug exposure. With approximately 36,840 incidents, this category accounts for 4.2% of nonfatal injuries in 2019. You might imagine most of these injuries come from inhaling chemicals from pesticides and cleaning products, but the category also includes exposure to:
- Extremely high or low temperatures
- Electricity
- Radiation
- Noise
- Pressure changes in the air or water
- Deficiencies in oxygen
- Events that are traumatic
Any of these exposures may occur in the workplace as a result of a single occurrence or repeated events. In any case, major and costly ailments such as frostbite, heatstroke, lung disease, and cancer may occur.
Leisure and hospitality (10.1%), manufacturing (4.5%), and natural resources and mining (4.1%) are the industries with the greatest incidence rates2.
How To Avoid Harmful drug exposure and Environments
Because of the wide variety of potential workplace injuries in this area, it’s difficult to provide short recommendations on how to prevent them. Here are a few pointers that you may be able to use in your particular situation:
- When dealing with dangerous materials, use goggles, face masks, and respirators.
- Maintain adequate ventilation in buildings and other sites where vapors might accumulate.
- Learn how to safely store chemicals and other hazardous materials.
- Employees should use ear protection in situations where sound levels exceed 85 decibels.
- Offer water and mandate Pauses for rest for employees working in extreme heat
- In the event of a severe cold, provide personnel with a comfortable place to stay.
- When operating near electrical risks, need protective clothes and insulated equipment.
Workplace Injuries and Their Costs
Many of our suggestions for protecting your workers involve extra costs for you. However, you need to compare that expense to Workplace Injuries and Their Costs. The National Safety Council (NSC) estimates that workplace fatal and nonfatal injuries cost employers a total of $171 billion in 2019, which the NSC breaks down to:
- $1,100 per employee
- Each death costs $1.22 million.
- $42,000 for each injury that has been seen by a doctor.
The NSC’s assessment includes both direct and indirect costs, such as medical bills and lost income, as well as lost productivity and worker replacement.
Tip: OSHA’s “$afety Pays” tool can help you estimate the cost of occupational injuries and illnesses.
How Safety Can Help You Save Money on Workers’ Compensation
Workers’ compensation insurance covers the immediate costs of employee injuries for the majority of company owners, but it doesn’t mean you don’t have expenses. According to the National Academy of Social Insurance’s most current statistics, the average cost of workers’ compensation insurance is $1.17 per $100 of payroll.
Reducing workplace injuries is one of the most effective methods to keep workers’ compensation insurance rates low and business morale high. Small company owners that implement safety plans and educate personnel in proper practices may qualify for savings from many insurance companies. Risk reduction solutions are available from top workers’ compensation carriers to assist company owners in lowering claims.
Fewer claims may also help you improve your rate of experience modification (EMR). When determining your rate, insurers utilize an EMR to reflect your workers’ compensation claim history. An EMR of less than one indicates that the company owner has fewer claims than similar firms. When this is taken into account in the premium calculation, the company’s workers’ compensation expenses are reduced.
Conclusion
Accidents happen, and they frequently happen in unexpected ways. You may, however, take actions to safeguard your staff from the most common workplace injuries. This not only helps you keep your workers’ compensation payments under control, but it also keeps them safe.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the most common injuries in the workplace?
There are a variety of injuries that people can get while working. Some common injuries include repetitive strain, which is due to the type or speed of work being done and cumulative trauma injury, which happen when there has been an accident but not enough time for healing before returning to the same job again.
What are the 5 most common causes of workplace accidents?
The 5 most common causes of workplace accidents are slips, trips, falls, and contact with objects.
