Data Overview of Young Worker Deaths and Injuries, United States

Charts on Young Worker Employment, Injuries and Illnesses

• Deaths: 26 deaths of youth < 18 years in 2020, 14 among youth <16 years
  (Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Census of Fatal Injuries.)
• Nonfatal Injuries: There is not a single source of data for nonfatal injuries and illnesses. The following are data from a variety of systems.
  • Estimated 15,100 emergency department-treated injuries among 15-17 year-olds in 2020 (Source: National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) – NIOSH Work Supplement – Work-Related Injury Statistics Query System. NIOSH estimates that 1/3^rd of work-related injuries are treated in hospital emergency departments)
  • Estimated 6,520 injuries and illnesses requiring at least one day away from work among youth 15-17 years of age in 2020. (Source: BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses.)
  • Estimated 4,036 work-related injuries of youth < 20 years of age on farms in 2014 (Source: NIOSH Childhood Agricultural Injury Survey.)