Liberty Mutual Research Institute recently published the 2014 Workplace Safety Index.
It's an annual ranking of the top 10 causes of serious nonfatal workplace injuries. The report is based on work related events that required an employee to miss six or more workdays. Each event type was then ranked according to the total workers' compensation costs.
The results are compiled from the most recent data available from the BLS (2012).
The Top Three Most Common Workplace Injuries in 2012:
The top 3 most common workplace injuries combined comprise almost half of the top 10, coming in at 49.6%. Financially, their toll on companies in workers' compensation claims totals $29.59 billion.
1: Overexertion ($15.1 B, 25.3%) - As broken down in the report, the bulk of overexertion was comprised of pushing, pulling, lifting, holding, carrying or throwing injuries.
2: Falls on same level ($9.19 B, 15.4%) - Defined as falling to the same work surface or falling into or against an object.
3: Struck by object or equipment ($5.3 B, 8.9%) - Defined as a falling, flying, or rolling object that strikes a person.
The Remaining Seven Most Common Workplace Injuries in 2012:
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4: Falls to lower level ($5.12, 8.6%) - Defined as a fall to at least one or more levels below the walking or working surface.
5: Other exertions or bodily reactions ($4.27 B, 7.2%) - These are categorized as injuries due to bending, crawling, reaching, twisting, climbing, stepping, kneeling, sitting, standing or walking.
6: Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle ($3.18 B, 5.3%) - Incidents include collision with roadway, vehicle struck object or animal in roadway, jackknifed or overturned on roadway, ran off roadway, sudden start or stop on roadway.
7: Slip or trip without fall ($2.17 B, 3.6%) - Including, but not limited to sloped walking surfaces, highly-polished floors, transitioning from one surface to another, loose or unanchored rugs/mats, loose floorboards, shifting tiles, and wet, muddy or greasy shoes.
8: Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects ($2.10 B, 3.5%) - Defined as being caught in running equipment or machinery, compressed or pinched by shifting objects, or being entangled in another object or equipment.
9: Repetitive motions including micro-tasks ($1.84 B, 3.1%) - Repetitive Motion Disorders (RMDs) include carpal tunnel syndrome, bursitis, tendonitis, epicondylitis, ganglion cyst, tenosynovitis, and trigger finger.
10: Struck against object or equipment ($1.76 B, 2.9%) - Defined as bumping into objects, stepping on objects, kicking objects, being pushed or thrown into or against objects, struck against stationary object or equipment while rising.
Summary of Most Common Workplace Injuries:
Combined, these 10 categories account for 83.8% of all workplace injuries. The total financial burden for these 10 injury types amounted to $50.03 billion in direct workers’ compensation costs, which averaged to just under $1 billion per week. This is an increase of 5.99% over 2011's total of $47.2 billion in claims for the top 10 workplace injuries.
Source: Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety