General retail stores have experienced the biggest increase in occupational injuries and illnesses between 2017 and 2021, according to a recent study.
Based on a report published earlier in October by the Jackman Law Firm, the incident rate at general U.S. retail stores has grown from 4.1 accidents for every 100 workers in 2017 to 5.6 incidents for every 100 workers in 2021, a 37% increase.
The industry with the second largest growth in injury/illness rates was the leather goods production sector, which saw incident rates increase by 25% to 4.5 accidents per 100 workers.
Care facilities and the professional services sectors tied for third place on the list after they both experienced a 13% increase in accident rates.
With a 10% increase, the timber industry came in fourth place on the list followed by storage services space, which has seen accidents grow by 8%.
The food production industry came in sixth place. Healthcare retail placed seventh. Public safety, grocery stores and water transportation came in a three-way tie for eighth place followed by manufacturing. The museums and culture industry rounded out the top ten.
“This data offers a fascinating insight into the risk of injury and illness across a wide range of industries in America,” said Chris Jackman, the lead attorney for the Jackman Law Firm. “It’s interesting and at the same time concerning to see the variety of sectors present on the list, which highlights that regardless of the nature of the job, employees can be vulnerable to injuries and illness in any shape or form.”
The Jackman Law Firm, a Tacoma-based law practice with four offices combined in Washington and Colorado, analyzed data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from 2017 to 2021 for this study.
