You will often hear people talk about how construction is the most dangerous industry in the United States. There are many inherent risks, from the use of power tools to falls from heights. Construction workers often suffer serious injuries, and some even pass away in these accidents.
However, you may also have heard that other industries are more dangerous, such as agriculture, hunting, fishing or forestry. There are also inherent risks in these industries, often because workers are in remote outdoor locations. So which one is really more dangerous? What do the statistics tell us?
Accident totals versus accident rates
It all depends on how you read the statistics. Construction is a very large industry, with tens of thousands of companies and millions of workers across the United States. Therefore, if you look at accident totals, especially when considering fatal workplace accidents, construction is the most dangerous.
An industry like forestry or fishing is vastly smaller. This means there will never be as many fatal accidents as you would find in construction. But if you look at the rate at which these fatal accidents occur, because it is a small industry, you can sometimes find higher fatal accident rates than you would find in construction.
This means each individual working in agriculture, forestry or fishing may actually have higher fatal accident odds, even if there are fewer of these accidents during the course of a year.
Workers’ comp benefits
No matter how you look at the statistics, workers often face risks of injury on the job. Those who suffer harm need to know how to seek appropriate workers’ comp benefits.
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