Industry Spotlight: Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction

The mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector involves the extraction of coal, crude petroleum, natural gas and other naturally occurring minerals. The average employment in this sector was almost 670,000 in 2011, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That year, more than 17,000 recordable injuries were reported at a rate of 2.2 per 100 full-time workers. The rate for cases involving days away from work, job restriction or transfer was 1.4.