A data-driven examination of seven years of workers' compensation trends reveals encouraging progress—and work still needs to be done.
Showing posts with label accidents. Show all posts
Showing posts with label accidents. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
Thursday, November 8, 2018
The Workplace is Getting Safer - The Future of Workers' Compensation
Saturday, October 25, 2014
Daylight Saving Time Is Bad For Worker Health
These negative impacts of daylight saving time even cost us real money in lost productivity. DST starts at 2:00 a.m. (the clock gets turned forward to 3:00 a.m.) on the second Sunday in March and ends at 2:00 a.m. (the clock gets turned back to 1:00 a.m.) on the first Sunday of November. It was enacted during World War I to decrease energy use. Benjamin Franklin first advocated for the practice in 1784 because he noticed that people used candles at night and slept past dawn in the mornings. By shifting time by an hour during the summer, they would burn fewer candles and not sleep through the morning sunlight. The debate still rages as to if this time-switch does save energy, but along the way we've seen signs that it has negative effects on our health and the economy. Surprising health impacts Transitions associated with the start and end of DST disturb sleep patterns, and make people restless at night, which results in sleepiness the next day, even during a "Fall back" period, since when we Fall Back, we might have trouble adjusting to going to sleep "later" after the time change. This sleepiness leads to a loss of productivity and an increase in "cyberloafing" in which... [Click here to see the rest of this post] |
Saturday, June 28, 2014
The Age-Old Question: Which Workers Have the Greatest Risk for Hand Injuries?
When it comes to workplace safety and accident prevention, all workers are not created equally. In fact, some groups of employees—such as younger workers or older workers—are higher risks for certain types of injuries. Evaluating risks that exist for both of these groups and developing strategies to mitigate them are key steps for preventing injuries in the workplace.
YOUNGER WORKERS: GREATER RISK FOR NON-FATAL INJURIES
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) classifies young workers as “those new to the workforce, even up to the age 24.” Representing 14 percent of the workforce today, young workers are a great investment to your business; however, they face a higher risk for injuries while on the job than older, more experienced workers.
According to a 10-year study by CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), an estimated 7.9 million younger workers were treated for nonfatal injuries in U.S. hospital emergency rooms between 1998 and 2007. The nonfatal injury rate was 5 injuries per 100 full-time workers, making it twice as high as workers over the age of 25. Furthermore, workers between 18 and 19 years of age have the highest incidence of workplace injuries among younger workers.
There are a few reasons younger workers may see a higher incidence of workplace injuries. Of course, there’s the obvious: younger workers are less experienced than their older counterparts and have less job knowledge,...
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Sunday, March 9, 2014
Workplace Accidents and Daylight Savings Time
While everyone may be waking up a little tired for work as the clock was moved forward last night by a hour to observe Daylight Savings Time (DST), the impact on work related accidents may be minor.
A recent study in Finland concludes: "It seems that sleep deprivation after DST transition is not harmful enough to impact on occupational accident rates."
On the other hand others report, "The real issue, however is not the later hours or extra sunlight. Studies have shown that changing the clocks is responsible for health problems (including increased heart attack and vehicular accident risks) and leads to hundreds of thousands of hours of lost productivity in workplaces across the country. Also: It's really annoying."
See also: A Whitehouse Petition to "Eliminate the bi-annual time change caused by Daylight Savings Time
A recent study in Finland concludes: "It seems that sleep deprivation after DST transition is not harmful enough to impact on occupational accident rates."
On the other hand others report, "The real issue, however is not the later hours or extra sunlight. Studies have shown that changing the clocks is responsible for health problems (including increased heart attack and vehicular accident risks) and leads to hundreds of thousands of hours of lost productivity in workplaces across the country. Also: It's really annoying."
See also: A Whitehouse Petition to "Eliminate the bi-annual time change caused by Daylight Savings Time
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Drivers Over Age 55 Far More Likely to Die in Job Accidents Than Younger Workers
Employees age 55 or older who drive as part of their jobs are more likely to be killed in accidents than younger colleagues because of declining cognition and greater susceptibility to injury, according to a U.S. report. Employees who drive for work aged 55 to 64 were about 50 percent more likely to die in an accident, and those 65 and older were three times as likely to die, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a study today. Highway accidents are the leading cause of workplace deaths in the U.S. The problem is likely to worsen as more Americans work deeper into their twilight years. People 55 years or older are projected to comprise 25 percent of the U.S. workforce in 2020, more than double the 12 percent share in 1990. The CDC said transportation companies can adapt by considering less nighttime driving, better-planned routes and refresher driver training. |
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Dedicated Bike Lanes Can Prevent On-The-Job Injuries
Traffic accidents are major factors in the death of workers on the job. A recent report from the American Public Health Association reports that separate cycling lanes will prevent accidents.
Objectives. We compared cycling injury risks of 14 route types and other route infrastructure features.
Methods. We recruited 690 city residents injured while cycling in Toronto or Vancouver, Canada. A case-crossover design compared route infrastructure at each injury site to that of a randomly selected control site from the same trip.
Results. Of 14 route types, cycle tracks had the lowest risk (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.11; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.02, 0.54), about one ninth the risk of the reference: major streets with parked cars and no bike infrastructure. Risks on major streets were lower without parked cars (adjusted OR = 0.63; 95% CI = 0.41, 0.96) and with bike lanes (adjusted OR = 0.54; 95% CI = 0.29, 1.01). Local streets also had lower risks (adjusted OR = 0.51; 95% CI = 0.31, 0.84). Other infrastructure characteristics were associated with increased risks: streetcar or train tracks (adjusted OR = 3.0; 95% CI = 1.8, 5.1), downhill grades (adjusted OR = 2.3; 95% CI = 1.7, 3.1), and construction (adjusted OR = 1.9; 95% CI = 1.3, 2.9).
Conclusions. The lower risks on quiet streets and with bike-specific infrastructure along busy streets support the route-design approach used in many northern European countries. Transportation infrastructure with lower bicycling injury risks merits public health support to reduce injuries and promote cycling.
Read More: http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300762?journalCode=ajph&&
Read more about motor vehicle accidents and workers' compensation
Objectives. We compared cycling injury risks of 14 route types and other route infrastructure features.
Methods. We recruited 690 city residents injured while cycling in Toronto or Vancouver, Canada. A case-crossover design compared route infrastructure at each injury site to that of a randomly selected control site from the same trip.
Results. Of 14 route types, cycle tracks had the lowest risk (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.11; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.02, 0.54), about one ninth the risk of the reference: major streets with parked cars and no bike infrastructure. Risks on major streets were lower without parked cars (adjusted OR = 0.63; 95% CI = 0.41, 0.96) and with bike lanes (adjusted OR = 0.54; 95% CI = 0.29, 1.01). Local streets also had lower risks (adjusted OR = 0.51; 95% CI = 0.31, 0.84). Other infrastructure characteristics were associated with increased risks: streetcar or train tracks (adjusted OR = 3.0; 95% CI = 1.8, 5.1), downhill grades (adjusted OR = 2.3; 95% CI = 1.7, 3.1), and construction (adjusted OR = 1.9; 95% CI = 1.3, 2.9).
Conclusions. The lower risks on quiet streets and with bike-specific infrastructure along busy streets support the route-design approach used in many northern European countries. Transportation infrastructure with lower bicycling injury risks merits public health support to reduce injuries and promote cycling.
Read More: http://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/abs/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300762?journalCode=ajph&&
Read more about motor vehicle accidents and workers' compensation
Jul 25, 2012
Court Rules Site of Accident Invokes Exclusivity Rule. English: Motor vehicle accident following a ve... A NJ appeals court ruled that a motor vehicle accident cause by a co-worker in the emplyers' parking lot, before work had.
May 23, 2011
In 2009, motor vehicle crashes resulted in approximately 23,000 deaths to passenger vehicle occupants (excluding motorcyclists), and 2.6 million occupants were treated for injuries in emergency departments in the United ...
Nov 29, 2011
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) proposes to restrict the use of hand-held mobile telephones, including hand-held cell phones, by drivers of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) while operating in ...
Apr 18, 2011
OSHA will investigate motor vehicle accidents, including cell phone records, and will issue citations and fine employers where an accident involved texting while driving. While OSHA has juridiction over employers, and not ...
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