Private sector companies reported an 8.4% decrease in nonfatal workplace illnesses and injuries between 2022 and 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Employers reported 2.6 million cases in 2023, including the lowest illness count since 2019 — a decline attributed primarily to a 72.6% drop in reported respiratory illnesses.
Illness and Injury Cases Down
Illness and injury cases in manufacturing fell from approximately 396,800 in 2022 to 355,800 in 2023, resulting in a total recordable cases (TRC) incidence rate of 2.8 cases per 100 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees in 2023.
The BLS reported that the private industry injury rate decreased in 2023 compared to 2022, even though employers reported nearly the same amount of cases. However, the manufacturing industry reported about 21,400 fewer total injury cases in 2023.
Seeing Fewer Respiratory Cases
The number of private industry respiratory cases dropped from 365,000 in 2022 to 100,200 in 2023. The manufacturing industry showed 18,700 fewer cases between the two years.
The report added that the food manufacturing sector recorded 61,400 total illness and injury cases last year. This equaled a TRC rate of 3.6 cases per 100 FTE employees, which represented a 1.0 case reduction from 2022.
OSHA Investigating Fewer Worker Deaths
BLS’ report came four days after OSHA stated that it investigated 11% fewer worker deaths between fiscal years 2023 and 2024.
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Image Source: Shutterstock / Aleksey Matrenin
