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News Release Information

17-1608-CHI
Monday, February 26, 2018

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (312) 353-1138

Fatal Work Injuries in Nebraska — 2016

Fatal work injuries totaled 60 in 2016 for Nebraska, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that the number of work-related fatalities in Nebraska increased from 50 in the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 83 in 1994 and 2002 to a low of 36 in 2005. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a total of 5,190 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2016, a 7-percent increase from the 4,836 fatal injuries in 2016, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program. This was the third consecutive increase in annual workplace fatalities and the first time more than 5,000 fatalities have been recorded since 2008.

Type of incident

In Nebraska, transportation incidents resulted in 36 fatal work injuries, accounting for 60 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from transportation incidents increased by 13 over the year. Fatalities from contact with objects or equipment resulted in nine workplace deaths, a decrease of two from the previous year.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2016, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. (See chart 2.) Violence and other injuries by persons or animals was the second-most common fatal event (17 percent), followed by falls, slips, or trips (16 percent).

Industry

The private agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industry sector had the highest number of fatalities in Nebraska with 18, little changed from the previous year. (See table 2.) Transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal event in the agriculture sector with nine worker deaths, followed by contact with objects or equipment with four fatalities. Sixty-one percent of those fatally injured in this sector worked in crop production.

The private transportation and warehousing sector had eight workplace fatalities, unchanged from the previous year. Truck transportation accounted for all the fatal injuries in this industry.

Occupation

Transportation and material moving occupations and management occupations had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 15 and 11, respectively. (See table 3.) Eleven of the fatalities within the transportation and material moving group were heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers. Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers accounted for the 11 fatalities in the management group.

Additional highlights
  • Men accounted for 87 percent of the work-related fatalities in Nebraska, below the 93-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 60 percent of the fatalities for men in Nebraska.
  • White non-Hispanics accounted for 90 percent of those who died from a workplace injury. Nationwide, this group accounted for 67 percent of work-related deaths.
  • Workers 25-54 years old accounted for 38 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2016, compared to 57 percent of on-the-job fatalities nationally.
  • Of the 60 fatally-injured workers in Nebraska, 75 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for both groups was transportation incidents.

Technical Note

Background of the program. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), part of the BLS Occupational Safety and Health Statistics (OSHS) program, compiles a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year. The CFOI program uses diverse state, federal, and independent data sources to identify, verify, and describe fatal work injuries. This ensures counts are as complete and accurate as possible.  For the 2016 national data, over 23,300 unique source documents were reviewed as part of the data collection process. For technical information and definitions for CFOI, please go to the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/home.htm.

Federal/State agency coverage. The CFOI includes data for all fatal work injuries, even those that may be outside the scope of other agencies or regulatory coverage. Thus, any comparison between the BLS fatality census counts and those released by other agencies should take into account the different coverage requirements and definitions being used by each agency. More on the scope of CFOI can be found at www.bls.gov/iif/cfoiscope.htm.

Acknowledgments. BLS thanks the Nebraska Workers' Compensation Court for their efforts in collecting accurate, comprehensive, and useful data on fatal work injuries. BLS also appreciates the efforts of all federal, state, local, and private sector entities that provided source documents used to identify fatal work injuries. Among these agencies are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; the National Transportation Safety Board; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Mine Safety and Health Administration; the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (Federal Employees' Compensation and Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation divisions); the Federal Railroad Administration; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; state vital statistics registrars, coroners, and medical examiners; state departments of health, labor, and industrial relations and workers' compensation agencies; state and local police departments; and state farm bureaus.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Fatal occupational injuries by event or exposure, Nebraska, 2015–16
Event or exposure (1)20152016
NumberNumberPercent

Total

5060100

Violence and other injuries by persons or animals

647

Intentional injury by person

335

Transportation incidents

233660

Aircraft incidents

--23

Other in-flight crash

--23

Pedestrian vehicular incident

--35

Pedestrian struck by vehicle in work zone

--23

Pedestrian struck by forward-moving vehicle in work zone

--23

Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle

192237

Roadway collision with other vehicle

121322

Roadway collision--moving in same direction

--610

Roadway collision--moving in opposite directions, oncoming

447

Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly

535

Roadway collision with object other than vehicle

135

Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway

135

Roadway noncollision incident

6610

Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway

4610

Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles

4712

Nonroadway noncollision incident

4610

Jack-knifed or overturned, nonroadway

358

Fires and explosions

423

Explosions

223

Explosion of nonpressurized vapors, gases, or liquids

223

Falls, slips, trips

4610

Falls to lower level

458

Other fall to lower level

--47

Exposure to harmful substances or environments

--35

Contact with objects and equipment

11915

Struck by object or equipment

747

Struck, caught, or crushed in collapsing structure, equipment, or material

335

Engulfment in other collapsing material

323

Footnotes:
(1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward.
 

NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.
 

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, Nebraska, 2015–16
Industry (1)20152016
NumberNumberPercent

Total

5060100

Private industry

485592

Natural resources and mining

181830

Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting

171830

Crop production

71118

Animal production and aquaculture

10610

Cattle ranching and farming

1058

Beef cattle ranching and farming, including feedlots

858

Beef cattle ranching and farming

758

Construction

5610

Construction

5610

Construction of buildings

335

Nonresidential building construction

323

Specialty trade contractors

223

Trade, transportation, and utilities

111525

Wholesale trade

247

Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods

135

Farm product raw material merchant wholesalers

135

Grain and field bean merchant wholesalers

--35

Retail trade

135

Gasoline stations

--23

Gasoline stations

--23

Gasoline stations with convenience stores

--23

Transportation and warehousing

8813

Truck transportation

5813

General freight trucking

3610

General freight trucking, long-distance

258

General freight trucking, long-distance, truckload

258

Specialized freight trucking

--23

Specialized freight (except used goods) trucking, long-distance

--23

Financial activities

135

Real estate and rental and leasing

--23

Professional and business services

447

Administrative and waste services

447

Administrative and support services

435

Services to buildings and dwellings

423

Educational and health services

123

Leisure and hospitality

335

Arts, entertainment, and recreation

123

Performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries

--23

Spectator sports

--23

Spectator sports

--23

Other services, except public administration

123

Other services, except public administration

123

Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional, and similar organizations

--23

Religious organizations

--23

Government (2)

258

State government

--23

Footnotes:
(1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2012.
(2) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry.
 

NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.
 

Table 3. Fatal occupational injuries by occupation, Nebraska, 2015–16
Occupation (1)20152016
NumberNumberPercent

Total

5060100

Management occupations

131118

Other management occupations

121118

Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers

101118

Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers

101118

Community and social service occupations

------

Religious workers

--23

Miscellaneous religious workers

--23

Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations

--35

Entertainers and performers, sports and related workers

--23

Athletes, coaches, umpires, and related workers

--23

Athletes and sports competitors

--23

Protective service occupations

123

Other protective service workers

--23

Miscellaneous protective service workers

--23

Crossing guards

--23

Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations

4610

Building cleaning and pest control workers

--23

Building cleaning workers

--23

Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners

--23

Grounds maintenance workers

--35

Grounds maintenance workers

--35

Landscaping and groundskeeping workers

--35

Sales and related occupations

123

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations

747

Agricultural workers

747

Miscellaneous agricultural workers

747

Farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animals

447

Construction and extraction occupations

458

Construction trades workers

358

Construction laborers

323

Construction laborers

323

Construction equipment operators

--23

Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators

--23

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations

258

Other installation, maintenance, and repair occupations

123

Maintenance and repair workers, general

123

Maintenance and repair workers, general

123

Transportation and material moving occupations

151525

Air transportation workers

--23

Aircraft pilots and flight engineers

--23

Commercial pilots

--23

Motor vehicle operators

81118

Driver/sales workers and truck drivers

81118

Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers

61118

Material moving workers

723

Footnotes:
(1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010.
 

NOTE: Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.
 

Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by selected demographic characteristics, Nebraska, 2015–16
Worker characteristics20152016
NumberNumberPercent

Total

5060100

Employee status

 

Wage and salary workers (1)

304575

Self-employed (2)

201525

Gender

 

Men

455287

Women

5813

Age (3)

 

20 to 24 years

--47

25 to 34 years

7915

35 to 44 years

8813

45 to 54 years

5610

55 to 64 years

141525

65 years and over

161728

Race or ethnic origin (4)

 

White, non-Hispanic

445490

Black or African-American, non-Hispanic

--35

Hispanic or Latino

4----

Footnotes:
(1) May include volunteers and workers receiving other types of compensation.
(2) Includes self-employed workers, owners of unincorporated businesses and farms, paid and unpaid family workers, and may include some owners of incorporated businesses or members of partnerships.
(3) Information may not be available for all age groups.
(4) Persons identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. The race categories shown exclude Hispanic and Latino workers.
 

NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Monday, February 26, 2018