Top 10 Causes of US Workplace Injuries

Hand holding card with the words Work Injury printed on it in black and red type

January 27, 2017 |

Hand holding card with the words Work Injury printed on it in black and red type

Liberty Mutual has released its 2017 Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index. The index includes a listing of the top 10 serious workplace injuries that cause employees to miss 6 or more days of work. Captives and self-insurers writing workers compensation coverage should find the data useful as a benchmark for their programs.

The top 10 serious nonfatal workplace injuries as a percentage of the total cost to employers are the following.

  1. Overexertion involving outside sources like injuries related to lifting, pushing, pulling, holding, or throwing objects—23 percent
  2. Falls on same level—17.7 percent
  3. Falls to lower level—9.2 percent
  4. Struck by an object or equipment—7.4 percent
  5. Other exertions or bodily reactions—6.5 percent
  6. Roadway incidents involving a motorized land vehicle—6.2 percent
  7. Slip or trip without a fall—3.8 percent
  8. Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects—3.3 percent
  9. Struck against object or equipment—3.2 percent
  10. Repetitive motions involving microtasks—3.0 percent

According to the 2017 report, the 10 leading causes of the most disabling work-related injuries account for $49.9 billion, or 83.4 percent, of the total cost of $59.9 billion. The total cost of the top 10 causes in 2016 was more than $51 billion.

The Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index study is based on data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the National Academy of Social Insurance, and the extensive information Liberty Mutual gathers from its insurance underwriting.

January 27, 2017