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NIOSH Fatal Occupational Injury Cost Fact Sheet: Utilities (NAICS 22)

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March, 2012
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication Number 2012-136
Related Publications:
Air Transportation | Couriers/Messengers | Transit/Ground Transportation | Truck Transportation | TWU | Warehousing/Storage | Water Transportation

Number, Rate, and Costs of Fatal Occupational Injuries in the U.S. Utilities Industry by Selected Characteristics, 2003–2006.

Number, Rate, and Costs of Fatal Occupational Injuries in the U.S. Utilities Industry by Selected Characteristics, 2003–2006.
Costs (2006 Dollars)
Characteristic Number of Fatalities Fatality Rate (per 100,000 workers) Mean (thousands) Median (thousands) Total(millions)
All U.S. Industries 22,197 3.9 $960 $944 $21,316
All Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities 3,704 12.9 944 974 3,496
All Utilities 225 4.8 1,250 1,290 281
Year
2003 42 3.5 1,141 1,153 48
2004 64 5.5 1,300 1,296 83
2005 46 3.9 1,228 1,302 57
2006 73 6.2 1,283 1,313 94
Sex
Male 219 6.0 1,239 1,285 271
Female 6 0.6 1,639 1,557 10
Age Group
16-24 11 5.1 1,214 1,280 13
25-34 35 4.8 1,575 1,611 55
35-44 56 4.2 1,510 1,542 85
45-54 77 4.5 1,314 1,298 101
55-64 38 5.7 690 653 26
65+ 8 9.4 93 75 1
Race
White 199 4.9 1,258 1,300 250
Black 16 3.3 1,107 1,193 18
Other1 10 5.1 1,319 1,215 13
Ethnicity2
Not Hispanic 214 4.9 1,254 1,296 268
Hispanic — — — — —
Selected SOC Occupation Group
Architecture and Engineering 11 3.1 1,431 1,570 16
Construction and Extraction 33 7.8 1,085 1,192 36
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair 107 14.3 1,317 1,411 141
Management 9 1.7 2,256 2,218 20
Production 35 4.2 1,088 1,131 38
Transportation and Material Moving 18 9.7 830 733 15
Selected Event or Exposure
02 Struck by object 14 0.3 1,013 896 14
03 Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects 5 0.1 1,045 1,012 5
11 Fall to lower level 31 0.7 1,168 1,222 36
31 Contact with electric current 56 1.2 1,413 1,444 79
38 Oxygen deficiency, n.e.c. 6 0.1 1,010 980 6
41 Highway accident 45 1.0 1,245 1,196 56
43 Pedestrian, non-passenger struck by vehicle, mobile equipment 13 0.3 1,061 1,111 14
46 Aircraft accident 5 0.1 1,551 1,679 8
51 Fire–unintended or uncontrolled 6 0.1 1,187 1,439 7
52 Explosion 13 0.3 1,228 1,333 16
Selected Source of Injury
1* Containers 8 0.2 996 1,154 8
34 Material handling machinery 9 0.2 1,022 816 9
42 Fasteners, connectors, ropes, ties 8 0.2 1,356 1,417 11
44 Machine, tool, and electric parts 45 1.0 1,427 1,463 64
5* Persons, plants, animals, and minerals 6 0.1 1,401 1,326 8
62 Floors, walkways, ground surfaces 34 0.7 1,123 1,197 38
64 Structures 8 0.2 1,134 896 9
81 Air vehicle 5 0.1 1,551 1,679 8
82 Highway vehicle, motorized 64 1.4 1,215 1,173 78
91 Ammunition 6 0.1 1,582 1,436 9
93 Atmospheric and environmental conditions 6 0.1 1,187 1,439 7

NOTE: Dashes indicate data that do not meet publication criteria.
Asterisks denote a summary level code not assigned to individual cases.

1This category includes all other races, such as American Indian and Asian, as well as unknown or missing races.

2Numbers are not reported for “unknown”, “not classified” or “not reported” categories.

Fatal Occupational Injury Cost Model

Theoretical Basis of Cost Estimation

The cost to society of a workplace fatality was estimated using the cost-of-illness approach, which combines direct and indirect costs to yield an overall cost of an occupational fatal injury. For these calculations, only medical expenses were used to estimate the direct cost associated with the fatality. The indirect cost was derived by calculating the present value of future earnings summed from the year of death until the decedent would have reached age 67, accounting for the probability of survival were it not for the premature death. (For more information, see Biddle, E [2004]. Economic Cost of Fatal Occupational Injuries in the United States, 1980–1997. Contemporary Economic Policy 22(3):370–381 or Biddle, E [2009]. The Cost of Fatal Injuries to Civilian Workers in the US, 1992-2001and Biddle E and Keane P [2011]. The Economic Burden of Occupational Injuries to Civilian Workers in the United States, 1992-2002. Cincinnati, OH: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, DHHS.)

Mathematical Representation of Indirect Costs

formula for PVF = present discounted value of loss per person due to an individual occupational fatal injury

where:

Mathematical Representation of Indirect Costs
Variable Definition
PVF = present discounted value of loss per person due to an individual occupational fatal injury
Py,q,s (n) = probability that a person of age y, race q, and sex s will survive to age n
q = race of the individual
s = sex of the individual
n = age if the individual had survived
Ys, j(n) = median annual compensation of an employed person of sex s, specific occupation j, and age n (includes median annual earnings, benefits, and wage growth adjustments)
j = specific occupation of individual at death
formula for mean annual imputed value of household production (h) of a person of sex s and age n = mean annual imputed value of household production (h) of a person of sex s and age n
g = earnings growth rate attributable to overall productivity
y = age of the individual at death
r = real discount rate (3%)

Data Sources

Fatality data: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI). This research was conducted with restricted access to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data. These data exclude military personnel, decedents with unknown age or sex, and fatalities occurring in New York City. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the BLS.

Probability of survival: National Center for Health Statistics, Division of Vital Statistics.

Median annual earnings: BLS Occupational Employment Statistics Survey. Wage data are based on the occupation of the decedent and the year and State of death adjusted by the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Deflator to the base year of dollar. The wage growth adjustment, which is the rate of change in wages between age groups, was calculated by NIOSH using BLS Current Population Survey data.

Benefits: BLS Employer Cost for Employee Benefits. Benefits data are based on the year of death adjusted by the GDP Deflator.

Mean annual home production: Expectancy Data. Data are derived through a time diary study sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and conducted by the University of Maryland.

Earnings growth rate: BLS Employment Compensation Index (ECI).

Medical costs: National Council on Compensation Insurance. This is a single 4-year average medical cost.

Employment estimates for rate calculations: BLS Current Population Survey.

Fatality Rate Calculations

Fatality rates were calculated by NIOSH and may differ from previously published BLS CFOI rates. Fatality rates were calculated as deaths per 100,000 workers. Fatality rates for sex, race, age group, and occupation were calculated using employment estimates by the individual characteristic within the specific industry. Employment estimates for the specific industry were used to generate rates for event and source.

Classification Systems

Classification Systems
Industry: 2002 National Industry Classification System (NAICS)
Occupation: 2000 Standard Occupational Classification System (SOC)
Event: 1992 BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS)

NIOSH Fatal Occupational Injury Cost Fact Sheet: Utilities (NAICS 22) [PDF – 323 KB]