Last year, 5,190 workers died in occupational incidents. Meanwhile, 3.2% of the U.S. workforce reported an injury or illness serious enough to require time away from work.
Key Takeaways
- In 2023, homicide-related workplace fatalities were not counted separately in CFOI totals; however, 2023 had 5,190 total fatal work injuries across all categories (BLS CFOI)
- In the U.S., 10% of fatal work injuries in 2023 involved contact with objects/equipment and falls (combined risk pattern from event categories)
- 3.2% of U.S. workers reported a workplace injury or illness serious enough to miss work in 2023
- In 2022, 5% of nonfatal injuries and illnesses in the U.S. were due to caught-in/between events
- In the UK, 4.3 million working days were lost due to work-related injury or illness in 2023 (HSE)
- In the U.S., workers’ compensation payments totaled $96.0 billion in 2022 (National Academy of Social Insurance)
- In the EU, workplace accidents and work-related ill health cost the economy an estimated €460 billion per year (EU Commission)
- $4.0 billion global workplace safety software market projected in 2028 (marketsandmarkets)
- The global industrial IoT in safety and compliance market is projected to reach $6.5 billion by 2028 (MarketsandMarkets)
- The safety management software market is forecast to grow at a CAGR of 11.2% from 2023 to 2030 (Grand View Research)
- 2023: 3.2% of U.S. workers reported a work-related injury or illness serious enough to miss work — prevalence of serious nonfatal workplace injury/illness
- 2022: 5% of nonfatal injuries and illnesses were due to caught-in/between events — share of nonfatal workplace injuries/illnesses by event/exposure
- 2023: 2,115 fatal work injuries resulted from transportation incidents — BLS CFOI detailed event classification count
- 2019: $5.1 billion annual estimated economic burden of workplace fatalities in the U.S. — peer-reviewed estimate of fatality-related economic burden
- 2016: $4.4 billion per year estimated cost of workplace violence to U.S. employers — peer-reviewed estimate
In 2023, millions of workers were hurt and costs soared, highlighting the urgent need for safer workplaces and better tracking.
Related reading
01 · Category
Fatalities & Serious Harm1 stats
01
In 2023, homicide-related workplace fatalities were not counted separately in CFOI totals; however, 2023 had 5,190 total fatal work injuries across all categories (BLS CFOI)https://www.bls.gov/news.release/cfoi.htm
Interpretation
Fatalities & Serious Harm Interpretation
In 2023, the Fatalities and Serious Harm picture included 5,190 total fatal work injuries, with homicide-related fatalities not broken out separately in the CFOI totals.
02 · Category
Causes & Risk Factors3 stats
01
In the U.S., 10% of fatal work injuries in 2023 involved contact with objects/equipment and falls (combined risk pattern from event categories)https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi1.htm
02
3.2% of U.S. workers reported a workplace injury or illness serious enough to miss work in 2023https://www.bls.gov/news.release/osh.nr0.htm
03
In 2022, 5% of nonfatal injuries and illnesses in the U.S. were due to caught-in/between eventshttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfoi.htm
Interpretation
Causes & Risk Factors Interpretation
For the causes and risk factors behind workplace accidents, the data show that in the U.S. a combined 10% of fatal work injuries in 2023 involved contact with objects or equipment and falls, while 5% of nonfatal injuries and illnesses in 2022 were caused by caught-in or between events, and overall 3.2% of workers reported serious injuries or illness that caused them to miss work in 2023.
03 · Category
Cost Analysis7 stats
01
In the UK, 4.3 million working days were lost due to work-related injury or illness in 2023 (HSE)https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/
02
In the U.S., workers’ compensation payments totaled $96.0 billion in 2022 (National Academy of Social Insurance)https://www.nasi.org/research/workers-compensation/
03
In the EU, workplace accidents and work-related ill health cost the economy an estimated €460 billion per year (EU Commission)https://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=757&langId=en&eventsId=1024
04
A 2016 study estimated that workplace violence costs U.S. employers $4.4 billion annually (peer-reviewed)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26902172/
05
A 2019 peer-reviewed study found that healthcare sector workplace injuries increased costs by $6,200per case (average)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31053566/
06
In Great Britain, the total cost of work-related ill health was estimated at £16.5 billion in 2022/23 (HSE)https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/cost.htm
07
$5.1 billion per year is the estimated economic burden of workplace fatalities in the U.S. (peer-reviewed estimate, 2019)https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31742521/
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Across regions, the direct economic burden of workplace harm is enormous, with costs reaching €460 billion per year in the EU and £16.5 billion in Great Britain in 2022 to 2023, showing that for Cost Analysis the financial impact is both persistent and large-scale.
More related reading
04 · Category
Industry Trends11 stats
01
$4.0 billion global workplace safety software market projected in 2028 (marketsandmarkets)https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/workplace-safety-software-market-112598903.html
02
The global industrial IoT in safety and compliance market is projected to reach $6.5 billion by 2028 (MarketsandMarkets)https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/industrial-iot-safety-compliance-market-111728340.html
03
The safety management software market is forecast to grow at a CAGR of 11.2% from 2023 to 2030 (Grand View Research)https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/safety-management-software-market
04
The construction safety equipment market is projected to reach $30.7 billion by 2030 (IMARC Group)https://www.imarcgroup.com/construction-safety-equipment-market
05
The global smart helmet market size was $2.1 billion in 2023 and forecast to reach $7.3 billion by 2032 (IMARC)https://www.imarcgroup.com/smart-helmet-market
06
The global OHS market was $6.2 billion in 2021 (Allied Market Research)https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/occupational-health-and-safety-market
07
In the AGC 2021 construction survey, 28% of contractors cited staffing shortages as a safety challenge (AGC)https://www.agc.org/sites/default/files/AGC%20Construction%20Survey%20Safety%20Results%202021.pdf
08
2020: 18.4% of EU workers reported having suffered at least one work-related accident in the past 12 months (Eurofound survey) — prevalence of reported accidentshttps://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/report/2021/work-accidents-and-lack-of-protection
09
2022: 44% of workers in the EU reported feeling stressed due to work (Eurofound) — mental health/stress as a work-related harm indicatorhttps://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/eu-stress-monitor-2022
10
2023: 58% of U.S. employees in high-hazard industries reported that safety training is effective (industry survey) — reported perception metrichttps://www.assp.org/news/press-releases/assp-2023-safety-culture-survey-results
11
2024: 66% of organizations use digital tools to track safety incidents (Gartner) — adoption level of safety data/analytics toolshttps://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2024-06-10-gartner-survey-shows-employers-using-digital-tools-to-improve-worker-safety
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Workplace accident prevention is accelerating under the Industry Trends lens as safety and compliance technology markets surge, including forecasts like a $4.0 billion global workplace safety software market by 2028 and safety management software growing at an 11.2% CAGR from 2023 to 2030.
05 · Category
Injury And Fatality Counts8 stats
01
2023: 3.2% of U.S. workers reported a work-related injury or illness serious enough to miss work — prevalence of serious nonfatal workplace injury/illnesshttps://www.bls.gov/news.release/osh2.nr0.htm
02
2022: 5% of nonfatal injuries and illnesses were due to caught-in/between events — share of nonfatal workplace injuries/illnesses by event/exposurehttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/case/cau_np_2022.htm
03
2023: 2,115 fatal work injuries resulted from transportation incidents — BLS CFOI detailed event classification counthttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cftb.htm
04
2023: 1,081 fatal work injuries resulted from falls — BLS CFOI event classification counthttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cfb.htm
05
2023: 881 fatal work injuries resulted from being struck by object/equipment — BLS CFOI event classification counthttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cfb2.htm
06
2022: 4,764,000 nonfatal injuries and illnesses occurred in total (all outcomes) — BLS SOII estimatehttps://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/osh/os/summ_02_2022.htm
07
2023: 6,421,000 nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in total (all outcomes) — BLS SOII estimatehttps://www.bls.gov/news.release/osh2.t01.htm
08
2021: 735 fatal work injuries involved contact with objects/equipment — National Safety Council using CFOI classification countshttps://injuryfacts.nsc.org/work/overview/workplace-fatalities/
Interpretation
Injury And Fatality Counts Interpretation
In the Injury And Fatality Counts category, fatalities are heavily concentrated in a few event types, with 2,115 transportation deaths and 1,081 fall deaths in 2023, while nonfatal injuries still add up to 4,764,000 in 2022.
06 · Category
Costs And Economic Impact2 stats
01
2019: $5.1 billion annual estimated economic burden of workplace fatalities in the U.S. — peer-reviewed estimate of fatality-related economic burdenhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6521914/
02
2016: $4.4 billion per year estimated cost of workplace violence to U.S. employers — peer-reviewed estimatehttps://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2559058
Interpretation
Costs And Economic Impact Interpretation
For the Costs And Economic Impact category, workplace incidents create a multi-billion dollar drain on the U.S. economy each year, with fatality-related economic burdens estimated at $5.1 billion in 2019 and workplace violence costing employers $4.4 billion per year in 2016.
report visual · Comparison
Top sources of fatal workplace injuries (U.S., 2023)
Across BLS CFOI classifications for 2023, transportation incidents, falls, and being struck by object/equipment account for major shares of fatal work injuries.
2023: 2,115 fatal work injuries resulted from transportation incidents — BLS CFOI detailed event classification count2,115
2023: 881 fatal work injuries resulted from being struck by object/equipment — BLS CFOI event classification count
2023
2023: 1,081 fatal work injuries resulted from falls — BLS CFOI event classification count
1,081
source-verifiedbls.gov2023
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Elena Vasquez. (2026, February 13). Workplace Accidents Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/workplace-accidents-statistics
MLA
Elena Vasquez. "Workplace Accidents Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/workplace-accidents-statistics.
Chicago
Elena Vasquez. 2026. "Workplace Accidents Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/workplace-accidents-statistics.
Sources & references
32 datasets cited across this report
+16 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)