Lost workday injuries

Lost time accidents the lost workday injury rate fell from 25 per million hours in 1992 to 13 in 1995. The figure has fallen slightly since then, and in 1998 was 9.1. This represents a fall of 58% during the period (against a... 

Loss of life as a result of hazards in this facility is unlikely. Hazards may result in no lost workday injuries or no restricted duty cases, loss of facility operational capability of less than 1 day, or damage to equipment or property less than 25,000. 

Ruser and Smith (1991) Time-series/cross-section of plants from 1979 to 1985 BLS Frequency of lost workday injuries OSHA inspections (1 = inspected early in the year, 0=inspected late in the year) Frequency of inspections per establishment by state, 2-digit industry, and 9 establishment size classes in year t and t-1 Insignificant in year t and t+1 Insignificant both individually and jointly... 

The two studies by Viscusi cited in Table 2-1 have used the identical empirical method to determine deterrence effects of OSHA inspections and penalties, but have come to different conclusions. The first found no significant impact from OSHA enforcement activities while the second discovered the frequency of inspections reduced both injuries and lost workdays. Because the results showed no evidence of increasing OSHA effectiveness over time, Viscusi credited the two studies varying levels of statistical significance to the differing sample sizes. With more years to examine the later Viscusi study was able to detect a statistically significant, but fairly small, impact from OSHA enforcement efforts. At most, from 1973 to 1983 OSHA inspections lowered the frequency of lost workday injuries by 1.5-3.6 percent. 

Abatement Effects. The remaining studies in Table 2-1 have examined the abatement impact of OSHA enforcement activities on workplace safety. Smith (1979), McCaffrey (1983), and Ruser and Smith (1991) determined the effectiveness of OSHA inspections by comparing lost workday injuries in plants inspected early in the year to lost workday injuries in plants inspected late in the year. Firms inspected first have more time to eliminate workplace hazards and, therefore, should have fewer injuries if inspectors correctly identify health and safety hazards. By examining only inspected companies, the three studies indirectly controlled for factors causing an inspection, such as deteriorating workplace safety, that might confound estimates of OSHA s effectiveness. 

In general, the studies did not find inspections significantly lowered lost workday injuries. Although Smith discovered inspections in 1973 reduced injuries, he did not detect a significant OSHA abatement effect in 1974. Likewise, McCaffrey found no impact on lost workday injuries from 1976 to 1978, and Ruser and Smith found no impact from... 

Frequency of lost workday injuries, excluding fatalities... 

OSHA s infrequent inspections and low fines make noncompliance with OSH A standards widespread. Econometric evidence we reviewed shows that OSHA had no effect on safety levels in the United States during the 1970s and reduced lost workday injuries by two to seven percent during the 1980s. A two to seven percent injury reduction is much less than the 50 percent injury reduction the framers of OSHA had intended. OSHA is not cost effective in raising workplace safety levels in the United States, and even unionized workers are now becoming skeptical of the value of OSHA s regulatory approach to safety (Nomani 1994). 

Lost Workday Injury Rates In 1994, of the 178 companies in the program, 31 had no lost workday injuries. Overall, the sites had only 49% of the lost workdays expected, or were 51% below the expected average for similar industries. 

No lost workday injuries or no restricted duty cases... 

Managers are now coming to realize that the actual cost of a lost workday injury is underestimated. The problem is that we only see what is on the surface and do not always understand the hidden cost. For example, let s look at the indirect and hidden costs of one lost workday incident ... 

Note The DART rate replaces the Lost Workday Injury and Illness (LWDII) rate. 

Lost workdays injury and illness incidence rate... 

Incident as used here refers to any incident that has the potential to cause injury or illness. Thus it includes actual lost-workday injuries and illnesses, non-lost-workday injuries and illnesses, first-aid cases, near misses, vehicle incidents, and equipment damage incidents (such as forklift coUisions with stationary objects, pump failures, spills, etc.). Some of these incidents may not be routinely documented in many organizations. 

The incident rate could be a rate calculated for recordable (combined) injuries and illnesses, recordable injuries, recordable illnesses, all injuries with lost workdays, all illnesses with lost workdays, injuries requiring only medical treatment, or first-aid injuries. These calculated rates would not normally be calculated on a national basis, but could be used to compare your progress on a yearly basis, or between jobsites or facilities. 

Injuries that result in days away from work are considered to be the most severe. It is not enough just to count the number of injuries. We must make an effort to deaease not only the number of injuries but the ones that are most costly in time lost and medical treatment. Using lost workdays provides a standard way of looking at these most sevae types of injuries. One of the questions that you ask first is Do I have employees in occupations that have historically been at risk for severe injuries Table 9.5 shows the numbers of lost-workday injuries that have occurred in high-risk occupations. 

In 1996, U.S. workers experienced more than 647,000 lost workdays due to WMSDs. WMSDs now account for 34 percent of all lost workday injuries and illnesses. These injuriescost businesses 15 to 20 billion in workers compensation costs each year. Indirect costs may run as high as 45 to 60 billion. 

Table 4.1 Fatal and Lost-Workday Injuries per 100,000 Employees 1995 ...

R. Aviation-related occurrence with fatality, lost workday injuries, explosion or fire, or substantial property damage. 

Slaughterhouses. On the cutting floor of a slaughterhouse, workers slice cattle carcasses on mechanical assembly lines that move at a rate of up to 400 carcasses per hour. In addition to causing deep cuts and dismemberment, the repetitive motions can cause carpal tunnel syndrome and other repetitive stress diseases. The animal slaughtering and processing industry reported almost 27,000 lost workday injuries in 2008. ... 

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