Recently released data show 388 workers were killed on the job in California in 2015, more than one per day. This and other findings are included in a report released today by Worksafe, an Oakland-based worker health and safety organization, to commemorate Workers Memorial Day 2017, an international day of remembrance for workers who have been killed and injured at work.
The report reflects data from 2015, the most recent data releases from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the California Department of Industrial Relations, and provides information on fatalities from 2015 and highlights particularly concerning workplace conditions. It also includes a partial list of workers killed in 2016 and brief profiles of several workers killed last year in California.
The report shows that the occupational fatality rate rose 10 percent from 2014 to 2015, increasing from 2.0 deaths to 2.2 deaths per 100,000 full-time workers. As in past years, California is still below the national fatality rate of 3.4 deaths per 100,000 full-time workers. Nationwide, 13 people are killed on the job each day and worker fatalities are higher than they have been in nearly a decade.