The National Safety Council (NSC) has recently parsed the data regarding those injured in the workplace in 2017. Its analysis was published on its Injury Facts web site. The bottom line is that it is an enlightening read, but it was not good news for women who work.
Assaults on women are much higher
Perhaps the most disturbing data was that women sustained 70 percent of all assault-related injuries that are not fatal. This adds up to 12,820 incidents in 2017 and a 60 percent jump between 2011 and 2017. Men sustained 5,530 assault-related injuries that were not fatal in 2017.
Other workplace safety issues for women
The NSC analysis also pointed to other instances where women were more likely to be injured on the job:
- Women make up 61 percent of complications due to repetitive motion
- Women make up 59 percent of injuries accidentally caused by another individual
- Women make up 57 percent of falls on the same level
Professions more dangerous for women
There are also certain common occupations where women sustain non-fatal injuries or illness at a disproportionately higher rate:
- Women in the healthcare industry sustain 80 percent of these injuries and illnesses
- Women in education sustain 61 percent of these injuries and illnesses
- Women performing office work sustain 60 percent of these injuries and illnesses
Women deserve a safe work environment
It will be interesting to find out what the NSC’s breakdown of numbers in a state-by-state analysis. However, employers here in New York need not wait to institute new protocols to better ensure that the workplace is safer for everyone.
The injured or ill women worker should seek medical care as soon as possible. It may also be necessary to file a workers’ compensation claim or seek damages through a personal injury suit against the negligent parties or individual. In either case, an attorney with experience in workplace injuries here in Brooklyn and the surrounding area will be a tremendous asset for the successful resolution of their dispute or injury claim so the women worker can focus on her recovery.