“Ohio’s incidence rate of 2.3 injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time employees remains lower than the national rate of 2.7,” said Kim Norris, chief communications officer with the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. “This is due in large part to Ohio employers continuing to adopt a culture of safety.”
Credit: Submitted Photo
Credit: Submitted Photo
Private-sector workers across the state were sickened or injured at work about 88,600 times last year, which was up nearly 14% from 2021, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Survey of Occupational Injuries and illnesses.
The number of non-deadly occupational injuries and illnesses in Ohio’s private sector had declined for five straight years prior to 2022.
This was only the second time that cases have risen in the last decade, and it was by far was the largest increase on record, though the bureau’s data only goes back to 2012.
How it compares
Ohio last year saw the ninth-largest increase in occupational illness and injury cases in the country.
Louisiana’s rate was the lowest (1.6 cases per 100 full-time employees), while Maine’s was the highest (five cases per 100 FTEs).
Though Ohio’s incidence rate edged up last year, it was still lower than in any year between 2012 and 2020.
The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation approved 70,007 new claims in fiscal year 2022, which was an increase of 4,405 from FY 2021, said Norris.
This could reflect a return to work and something like normalcy after the COVID pandemic, she said.
But new claims have been trending downward in recent years. There were 105,000 allowed new claims in 2010 and 260,000 in 2000.
The bureau provides workers’ compensation insurance to about 257,000 private and public employers.
More details
Private industry employers in Ohio with some of the highest illness and injury rates included nursing and residential care facilities; courier and messenger-service providers; forging and stamping companies; museums, historical sites and similar institutions; grocery and related product merchant wholesalers; and foundries, the federal survey data show. The Bureau did not have data for all industries and sectors.
Nursing is one of the more hazardous occupations because workers often have to lift and move patients, they can be exposed to biohazards and infectious diseases and they sometimes encounter aggressive and violent patients, according to Monast Law Office, a workers’ compensation law firm in Columbus.
Construction workers face a variety of risks, including falling at a job site or being struck by falling objects.
Many job sites have heavy machinery and power tools that can fail or malfunction or that can be operated dangerously and incorrectly.
Jobs in warehouses, factories and retail, food and dining establishments can require lifting, bending and carrying heavy objects.
Many jobs require that employees stand or walk for long periods of time or that they must complete repetitive tasks that can put a strain on the body.
Across the country, both workplace illnesses and injuries increased last year, but there was a big jump in respiratory illness cases, according to the Survey of Occupational Injuries and illnesses.
Many employers have seen COVID outbreaks at the office or job site.
Premier Community Health has workplace wellness programs that offer screenings, testing, training and occupational health services and an employee assistance program.
Premier’s occupational health and workplace wellness program has more than 800 clients, said Jessica Brooks, senior manager of occupational health and employee health.
Workplace injuries can impact overall workforce wellbeing, Brooks said, and Premier Occupational Health helped employers achieve a 13% decrease in workplace injuries from 2021 to 2022
She said this was accomplished through onsite risk assessments by expert occupational health providers; annual physicals for higher-risk occupations; annual injury evaluations; and random, onsite drug testing.
She said Premier also offers ergonomics training because these kinds of injuries are among the top causes of why workers miss days of work.
“We have seen greater interest among employers in implementing and enhancing preventive wellness strategies, including a desire to ramp up physical and mental wellness programs,” she said.
Private industry cases of nonfatal workplace illnesses and injuries in Ohio
2023: 88,600 cases, 2.3 cases per 100 full-time employees
2022: 78,000 cases, 2.2 cases per 100 FTEs
2021: 85,600, 2.4 cases per 100 FTEs
2020: 85,300, 2.4 cases per 100 FTEs
2019: 91,800, 2.4 cases per 100 FTEs
2018: 93,100, 2.4 cases per 100 FTEs
2017: 101,500, 2.6 cases per 100 FTEs
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Survey of Occupational Injuries and illnesses.
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