Deaths decreasing among Wyoming workers: report

Cheyenne, WY – Workplace deaths have declined in Wyoming, to 21 in 2013 from 31 the previous year, claims a state report released Sept. 9.

According to the second annual Epidemiology Report on Occupational Fatalities and Non-Fatal Injuries, most of the 2013 deaths occurred in transportation (seven), followed by agriculture (three), oil and gas (three), manufacturing (three), mining (two), logging (one), construction (one), and other (one). The deaths in the mining industry were the first recorded since 2011.

Workers’ compensation claims also dropped – 12,133 in 2013, down from 16,292 in 2006 – as well as hospitalizations (280 from 1,086). The report states that these decreases could be due to events such as improvements in worker safety and outpatient medical care.

Wyoming historically has had a high rate of workplace fatalities. The state had the second highest fatality rate in the nation (12.2 per 100,000 workers) after North Dakota (17.7) in 2012, according to an AFL-CIO report.