Keeping aging workers safe

The proportion of older workers in the United States continues to rise, prompting safety professionals and researchers to strategize about the best ways to accommodate them.

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that, in 2010, 19 percent of workers were 55 and older. U.S. Census Bureau data from 2015 put that number at 22.6 percent. By 2024, BLS estimates, 24.8 percent of the workforce will be made up of older workers.

Why the influx of older workers? Jim Grosch, a research psychologist and co-director of the NIOSH Center for Productive Aging and Work, cites both a rise in life expectancy and financial issues. “Just the demographics of the aging population,” Grosch said. “There are more and more people who are still working over the age of 55, and also, just related to that is a change in pensions. … Not everybody puts away as much as they could, so the pensions tend to be less generous. People don’t have quite the financial resources.”

A 2012 study from the Center for Construction Research and Training – also known as CPWR – found that older construction workers may be hesitant to shift to less physically demanding work, given the risk of reduced income or reduced access to health and pension benefits.

Added value … and risk

Maryland Transportation Administration construction director Dave Ferrara, 54, praises the “institutional knowledge” of his team’s older members. Construction workers realize they are in a profession in which roles often change as physical skills diminish, Ferrara said. Expectations may shift, but an emphasis on safety remains a priority.

If an older MTA worker lacks the strength or stamina to climb a bridge suspension tower as part of a job, for instance, the worker would be assigned to what Ferrara called “less demanding” work.

“I think they definitely work smarter,” he said. “I think you don’t see them getting injured as often as the younger worker. But when they do get injured – and we don’t have real major injuries – it definitely takes longer for things to heal.”

Injury concerns

Data from the 2014 Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses backs up Ferrara’s latter claim. Among construction workers, median days away from work averaged 20 for the 45-54 age group, 21 for workers 55 to 64 years old and 37 for those 65 and older. For all industries, the median days away for those age groups were 12, 15 and 17, respectively. In contrast, the median for all ages was 10 missed days among construction workers and nine days for all industries.

“That’s just the physical changes that occur that make physical rehabilitation more difficult,” Grosch said.

Additional 2014 survey data shows that employees ages 45 to 54 experienced musculoskeletal disorders at a rate of about 40 per 10,000 full-time workers – the highest among all demographics. Older workers also experienced trunk, back, shoulder and knee injuries more often than younger workers, who were more likely to have head and hand injuries.

Further, the 2014 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries data shows that the risk of fatal falls across all industries increases with age. Workers ages 20 to 24 years old accounted for 8.2 percent of fatal falls in 2014, with the rate climbing for each ensuing age group:

• 45-54: 16.8 percent
• 55-64: 20.7 percent
• 65 and older: 27.3 percent

Read more at safetyandhealthmagazine.com