New Report: Top 5 States, Industries for Workplace Fatalities

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) has released its 35th annual report on health and safety protections for American workers.

“Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect,” released on April 27, examines the toll of workplace fatalities and injuries in 2024, the latest labor data available.

Latest Stats on Workplace Fatalities

After examining the data, the report determined:

• 5,070 workers died on the job in the U.S. in 2024, down 4% from the previous year.
• Put another way, a worker died every 104 minutes from a work-related injury in 2024.
• Transportation incidents were the leading cause of workplace deaths in 2024, accounting for 38.2% of all occupational fatalities.
• The job fatality rate was 3.3 deaths per 100,000 workers. Minority employees died on the job at higher rates: 3.4 workplace fatalities per 100,000 for Black workers and 4.3 per 100,000 for Latino workers.
• An estimated 530 workers died from heat on the job in 2024, a year that saw significant heat waves and was confirmed as the hottest year on record by a wide margin.
• Unintentional overdoses decreased 21% from 2023 to 2024.
• Workplace homicides increased 3% from 2023 to 2024; workplace suicides decreased 6.4% over the same period. 
• An estimated 135,000 workers died from occupational diseases.

The Deadliest Industries in America

By industry, the most dangerous jobs with the highest workplace fatalities were in:

• Agriculture, forestry, and fishing and hunting: 20.9 workplace fatalities per 100,000 workers
• Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction: 13.8 per 100,000 workers
• Transportation and warehousing: 12.2 per 100,000 workers
• Construction: 9.2 per 100,000 workers, and
• Wholesale trade: 4.6 per 100,000 workers.

States with the Most Workplace Fatalities

The report also looked at locations and found the states with the highest workplace fatality rates were:

• Wyoming: 13.9 workplace fatalities per 100,000 workers
• Mississippi: 8.0 per 100,000 workers
• Alaska: 7.1 per 100,000 workers
• North Dakota: 6.8 per 100,000 workers, and
• Arkansas: 6.2 per 100,000 workers.

Other Demographics: Gender and Age

Women

In 2024, a total of 413 women died while working, accounting for 8.1% of all worker fatalities. However, a larger percentage of women died from work-related homicides – women accounted for 15.3% (72 deaths) of all workplace homicide fatalities.

Aging Workers

In 2024, more than one-third of all workplace fatalities occurred among workers ages 55 and older. Employees aged 65 and older face nearly three times the risk of dying on the job as other workers, with a fatality rate of 9.1 per 100,000 workers.

Younger Workers 

In 2024, 420 employees under the age of 25 died on the job, including 40 minors under the age of 18. The young worker death rate has nearly doubled since 2020, rising from 1.3 per 100,000 in 2022 to 1.9 in 2023 and then to 2.7 in 2024. The report also flagged the growing exploitation of child workers, many of them migrants, in dangerous conditions.

Younger workers face heightened risk due to limited work experience, inadequate safety training and reluctance to speak up when they encounter safety concerns.

The AFL-CIO’s report also covers nonfatal injuries and includes dozens of charts and graphs to help readers interpret the data. Download the full 296-page report.

Key Takeaways for HR

From this report, HR pros can draw several key takeaways to improve workplace safety and mitigate risks for employees:

1. Increased vigilance for high-risk industries and states: Pay close attention to industries with high workplace fatality rates, such as agriculture, forestry, mining, transportation and construction. Similarly, states with elevated fatality rates warrant additional safety measures and scrutiny.
2. Targeted safety training and protocols: Tailored safety training programs should be implemented, particularly in industries and regions identified as high-risk. Address specific hazards relevant to each industry, such as machine safety in agriculture or heat-related risks in outdoor jobs.
3. Diversity and inclusion in safety measures: Ensure that safety measures are inclusive and address the unique challenges of Black and Latino employees. This may include culturally sensitive training, targeted outreach programs and translators during safety training, when appropriate.
4. Gender-specific safety concerns: Acknowledge that men and women have differing safety concerns – and face different safety risks. Women represent a disproportionate share of workplace homicide victims. While women accounted for 8.1% of all workplace fatalities in 2024, they represented 15.3% of workplace homicide deaths. Employers should prioritize workplace violence prevention efforts to better protect female employees. 
5. Attention to age-related risks: Take into account the increased vulnerability of older workers. Depending on the nature of the work, this might involve ergonomic assessments, modified work duties or additional safety training tailored to the needs of aging employees. You may also need to revise your emergency response plan.
6. Special consideration for younger workers: The report’s findings on the growing exploitation of migrant child workers in dangerous conditions warrant particular attention. The Department of Labor (DOL) has stressed that employers have a responsibility to keep younger workers safe as they enter the workforce. The DOL’s YouthRules website provides free resources for employers to educate younger workers about what they can – and can’t – do at work.