Published in LiP Magazine
[http://www.lipmagazine.org]
View the full version of this article on the LiP website
[excerpt]
A Job to Die For
Why so many Americans
are killed, injured or made ill at work and what to do about it
by
Lisa Cullen
01.15.03
The National Toll
very
day, 165 Americans die from occupational diseases and 18 more die from a work
related injury. On the same day, more than 36,400 non-fatal injuries and 3,200
illnesses will occur in America's workplaces. Each year, this unknown workplace
epidemic extends into nearby communities to claim the lives of 218 innocent
bystanders and injure another 68,000.
America's millions of occupational diseases, deaths and injuries cost an unfathomable $155.5 billion, annually; five times the cost of AIDS, three times the cost of Alzheimer's disease and almost as much as cancer. This already unimaginable number grows by another $13 billion when property damage, police and fire protection, and costs to innocent bystanders are added. We bear the financial burden with reduced job opportunities, lower salaries, earlier social security payments, and higher costs for health insurance, workers' compensation and disability.
The costs are nothing, however, compared with the toll paid in pain and suffering. Each year, more than 66,700 dead workers leave irrevocably changed families, coworkers and friends.
Despite its enormous toll, the epidemic of uncontrolled illnesses and injuries raging through our nation's workplaces moves quietly, its devastation too dispersed to be recognized by the public or the media. Still, millions of workers injured or made ill each year and their families struggle in a wake of personal pain and loss of income.
A typical day in the American workplace includes 165 occupational disease deaths plus the following fatalities:
Even uncommon fatalities add up in the course of a year. Annually, 30 workers die the maddening and avoidable death of heatstroke; another 30 are poisoned to death by the sneaky, odorless carbon monoxide gas; 10 die from exploding tires (usually when inflating them); 12 farmers are gored or trampled to death and 8 workers inspecting or cleaning machinery are burned to death by escaping steam.
Accidents vs. Foreseeable Consequences
n accident
can be defined as an unexpected and unintentional happening that results in
damage to people or property. Although it is common to say, "Hey, accidents
happen," they are more complicated than that. In hindsight, most can be
seen building from several causes, each representing a missed opportunity to
step in and prevent the forthcoming damage. In fact, the safety and health profession
is so averse to them term "accident" that the word "incident"
has been widely substituted.
In the workplace, few real accidents occur because the surroundings and operations are known; therefore, hazards can be identified. When harm from those hazards can be foreseen, accidents can be prevented.
Most workplaces are manageable environments—employers can ventilate chemicals; shield against physical danger like burns, falls or amputations; and provide protective equipment. Once buildings, equipment, processes and chemicals are safe to use, employers can establish safe work procedures. They can further undergird the accident prevention efforts with training, enforcement, employee involvement, safety inspections and medical surveillance. ...
Accidents don't just happen; they build. Like the forklift example, most have multiple causes and influences that could be addressed to prevent an incident. Employers often don't realize how significantly they risk employee safety or recognize how much more they can do to reduce risk—how preventable accidents are.
Although tougher to recognize, even rare hazards can be predicted. In 1990, for example, the UAW lost a millwright when he walked the roof of a foundry to replace a steel cable. Returning to his shop, he crossed a deteriorated section and fell to his death. He was unaware that heating and cooling weakened that spot of the roof and that fragments had already fallen. Diligent facility maintenance and inspections could have prevented this accident and this man's death.
Most jobs have expected, known hazards. Working in and near excavation, for example, poses the obvious risks of death or injury from cave-in. Also well known in the excavation business is the fact that certain soil types and other factors—things like water in the hole and previous soil disruption—increase the chances for a cave-in. Based on these factors, the OSHA standard prescribes appropriate sloping and benching requirements. When trenches or excavations collapse because sandy soil was piled right up to the edge, there is little room to claim it was an accident. One of the most horrifying ways to die is to be buried to your shoulders by soil, unable to inhale because your chest can't expand.
Like excavating, heavy equipment work near power lines carries the risk of electrocution. Workers die every year when machines, ladders and scaffolds contact electrical wires. Simply barricading the danger zone or de-energizing the lines are two, immediate life-saving solutions. ...
Investing in Prevention
ood
accident prevention pays off. According to OSHA, "establishing a safety
and health program to prevent occupational injuries and illnesses is not only
the right thing to do, it's the profitable thing to do. Studies have shown a
$4 to $6 return for every dollar invested in safety and health."
The fruits of accident prevention can be found by looking where OSHA focuses its attention. After employers receive an OSHA inspection and penalty, for instance, injuries and illnesses decrease an average of 22 percent within three years. In OSHA's Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) where employers commit to integrating safety into their total management system, injury incident rates were 55 percent lower compared with similar industries. All together in 1999, OSHA estimated that the VPP sites saved more than $130,000,000 in direct and indirect costs.
In addition to preventing a tragedy, OSHA estimates that each avoided occupational fatality saves $910,000. Each prevented injury and illness that would have involved recovery time away from work saves $28,000. For each other serious injury and illness avoided, $7,000 is saved.
Costs of injuries and illnesses include not only direct medical expenses and worker compensation, but also indirect costs, which can increase total costs by as much as four and a half times. Indirect costs include: training and paying replacement workers, investigating the accident, interrupted production, schedule delays, managing the claim, legal fees, and increased insurance costs. ...
***
Occupational injuries and illnesses occur in intolerable numbers, ruining lives and families and costing the nation nearly 3 percent of its gross domestic product. They are preventable; therefore, it is logical to strongly address workplace health and safety as an important public health issue. This has not been done.
Because workplace accidents are mistakenly perceived as inevitable and uncontrollable happenings, they have not received the attention deserving of such a monumental cause of loss. The fact is, though, that most accidents are preventable. A paradigm shift, a change in the way we view workplace "accidents," is one of the steps required before the issue of occupational health and safety will be taken seriously. ...