NIOSH Fatal Occupational Injury Cost Fact Sheet: Public Administration

Number, rate, and costs of fatal occupational injuries in the U.S. public administration industry by selected characteristics, 1992–2002

			Costs (2003 dollars)
Characteristic	Number of fatalities	Fatality rate(per 100,000 workers)	Total (millions)	Mean(thousands)	Median(thousands)
All incidents	3592	5.5	$3855	$1075	$1158
Sex:
Male	3209	8.9	3468	1083	1169
Female	383	1.3	388	1012	1068
Race of decedent:
White	3007	5.8	3268	1088	1165
Black	430	4.1	434	1016	1107
Other*	155	5.8	153	989	1050
Age of decedent:
16–19	45	8.6	40	879	902
20–24	217	7.3	243	1118	1134
25–34	978	6.3	1254	1282	1294
35–44	958	4.7	1231	1285	1304
45–54	813	4.7	848	1043	1040
55–64	416	6.2	228	548	534
65+	165	10.6	13	79	66
Occupation group:†
Managerial and professional specialty	564	2.2	655	1168	1242
Technical, sales, and administrative support	292	1.6	327	1120	1095
Service	2125	11.8	2419	1140	1225
Farming, forestry, and fishing	65	19.8	32	500	565
Precision production, craft, and repair	210	9.1	181	867	929
Operators, fabricators, and laborers	321	25.8	227	710	752
Event or exposure:†
Contact with objects and equipment	163	0.3	145	897	850
Falls	163	0.3	133	816	872
Bodily reaction and exertion	13	0.0	13	979	1024
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	173	0.3	184	1072	1132
Transportation accidents	1815	2.8	1917	1059	1140
Fires and explosions	217	0.3	253	1164	1240
Assaults and violent acts	1045	1.6	1207	1155	1222

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*This category includes all other races, such as American Indian and Asian, as well as unknown or missing races.

^†Numbers are not reported for “unknown” or “not classified” categories.

Fatal Occupational Injury Cost Model

Theoretical Basis of Cost Estimation

The cost to society of a workplace fatality was estimated using the cost-of-illness approach, which combines direct and indirect costs to yield an overall cost of an occupational fatal injury. For these calculations, only medical expenses were used to estimate the direct cost associated with the fatality. The indirect cost was derived by calculating the present value of future earnings summed from the year of death until the decedent would have reached age 67, accounting for the probability of survival were it not for the premature death. (For more information, see Biddle, E [2004]. Economic Cost of Fatal Occupational Injuries in the United States, 1980–1997. Contemporary Economic Policy 22(3):370–381.)

Mathematical Representation of Indirect Costs

PVF = ΣPy,s (y+1)[Ys, j(n) + Yhs(n)] (1+g)n–y/(1+r)n–y
where:

PVF	= present discounted value of loss due to occupational fatal injury per person
Py,s (y+1)	= probability that a person of race r, sex s, and age y will survive to age y+1
y	= age of the person at death
s	= sex of the person
n	= age if the person had survived
Ys,j(n)	= median annual earnings of an employed person of sex s, occupation j, and age n (includes benefits and life-cycle wage growth adjustment)
Yhs(n)	= mean annual imputed value of home production of a person of sex s and age n
g	= wage growth rate attributable to overall productivity
r	= real discount rate (3%)

Data Sources

Fatality data: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI). These data exclude military personnel, decedents with unknown age or sex, fatalities occurring in New York City, and fatalities from the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Probability of survival: National Center for Health Statistics, Division of Vital Statistics.

Median annual earnings: BLS Current Population Survey. Wage data are based on the occupation of the decedent and the year of death adjusted by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Deflator to base year of dollar. Life-cycle wage growth was calculated based on the rate of change in wages between age groups.

Benefits: U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Benefits data are based on the industry where the decedent was employed and the year of death adjusted by the GDP Deflator.

Mean annual home production: Expectancy Data that were derived by a time diary study sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and conducted by the University of Maryland.

Wage growth rate: Based on BLS Employment Cost Index (ECI)

Medical costs: National Council on Compensation Insurance. Costs are a 3-year average cost.

Employment estimates for rate calculations: BLS Current Population Survey.

Fatality Rate Calculations

Fatality rates were calculated by NIOSH and may differ from previously published BLS CFOI rates. Fatality rates were calculated as deaths per 100,000 workers. Fatality rates for sex, race, age group, and occupation were calculated using employment estimates by the individual characteristic within the specific industry sector. Employment estimates for the specific industry sector were used to generate rates for event.

Classification Systems

Industry:	1987 Standard Industrial Classification System (SIC)
Occupation:	1990 Bureau of Census Occupational Classification System (BOC)
Event:	1992 BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS)

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