This year marks the 31th anniversary of the enactment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. The Act - which guarantees every American worker a safe and healthful working environment - created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to set and enforce standards and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to conduct research and investigations.

Since 1970, workplace safety and health conditions have improved. More than 254,270 workers can now say that their lives have been saved since the passage of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Unfortunately, too many workers remain at risk.

In 2000, 5.7 million workers were injured, more than 5,900 killed by traumatic injuries and an estimated 50,000 - 60,000 died from occupational diseases.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were 5,915 workplace deaths due to traumatic injuries in 2000, a slight decline from the number of deaths in 1999, when 6,023 workplace deaths were reported. Alaska again led the country with the highest fatality rate (19.21/100,000); the lowest state fatality rate (1.5/100,000) was found in Rhode Island. These statistics do not include deaths from occupational diseases, which claim the lives of an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 workers each year.

Transportation incidents, in particular highway crashes, continue to be the leading cause of workplace deaths, responsible for 2,611 or 44 percent of all fatalities in 2000.

The construction industry reported the largest number of workplace fatalities, with 1,154 work-related deaths (20 percent of all fatalities). This is small decrease from the number of deaths in the construction industry the previous year.

The occupations at greatest risk of work-related fatalities, based on the number of fatalities per 100,000 employed, were timber cutters (122.1/100,000), fishers (108.3/100,000), and airplane pilots and navigators (100.8/100,000).

Fatal work injuries to men were down nearly three percent, while fatalities to women increased slightly in 2000. Self employed workers, who make up only seven percent of the work force, accounted for 20 percent of the fatality total.

While the number of fatal work injuries among white and black workers were lower in 2000, fatal injuries among Hispanic or Latino workers increased sharply, from 729 in 1999 to 815 in 2000.

On average, 16 workers were fatally injured each day during 2000. There were 214 multiple-fatality incidents, which resulted in 531 job-related deaths.

In 2000, more than 5.7 million injuries and illnesses were reported in private sector workplaces. An additional 631,600 injuries and illnesses occurred among state and local employees in the 29 states and territories where this data is collected. This is a four percent increase from 1999, when 606,900 state and local employees were injured or made ill.

In 2000, BLS reported 2.8 million injuries that resulted in restricted activity or lost-time; 1.7 million of these injuries resulted in at least one lost-work day.

The national private sector injury rate decreased slightly, falling from 6.3/100 workers in 1999 to 6.1/100 workers in 2000. The injury and illness rate for mining increased in 2000 to 4.6 from 4.1. The rate in nearly all other industries declined, with the exception of Finance and Services, which remained the same.

In 1991, BLS reported more than 582,000 serious musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). These cases made up 34.2 percent of all lost-workday injuries, making them the nation's leading job safety problem. In 1999, serious cases of carpal tunnel syndrome increased to 27,900 reported cases from 26,300 cases reported in 1998. However, these numbers understate the true magnitude of the problem. Research and experience shows that many MSDs go unreported; OSHA has estimated that for every reported MSD, another MSD goes unreported. In addition, the BLS numbers do not include the many ergonomic injuries that occur among state and local workers.

According to the National Safety Council and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job fatality rate has been cut by 76 percent since 1970.

Injury rates have also fallen.' According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 11 injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in 1973; by 2000, the rate was 6.1 per 100 workers—a decrease of 45 percent.

Declines in workplace fatalities and injuries have been much greater in those industries where OSHA has targeted its standards and enforcement activities. In manufacturing, the fatality rate has declined by 63 percent and the injury rate by 41 percent since the passage of OSHA. Similarly, in construction, the fatality rate has declined by 81 percent and the injury rate by 58 percent.

In those sectors where OSHA has focused limited attention, injury rates have changed very little. For example, in the service sector, the injury rate in 1973 was 6.2 per 100 workers; in 2000, it was 4.9.

Throughout the years, OSHA standards have significantly reduced worker exposure to serious hazards and prevented unnecessary injuries, illnesses and deaths. For example, OSHA's 1978 cotton dust standard virtually eliminated new cases of byssinosis, the 1978 lead standard dramatically reduced occupational lead poisoning, and standards on confined space entry, lock-out of dangerous equipment and grain dust prevented thousands of unnecessary deaths.