Hidden Dangers: Risks of Wholesale and Retail Work Largely Unnoticed

Details

• Personal Author:
  Anderson, Vernon P. ; Linn H
• Description:
  Wholesale and Retail Trade (WRT) jobs are frequently perceived as relatively low-risk work, especially when compared to industry jobs in construction, agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and transportation. This perception is largely borne out when the numbers and rates of illnesses, injuries and deaths from injuries are tabulated and calculated for the entire WRT sector. But a closer look reveals that, each year, the WRT workforce experiences between 500 and 600 fatal injuries and over 800,000 recorded nonfatal injuries and illnesses. The combined WRT workforce of over 21 million faces key risk factors for potentially disabling back and shoulder injuries, and comprises a large proportion of the youngest and oldest workers in the U.S. The WRT sector also includes thousands of small businesses, where safety and health risks often go unrecognized and are rarely discussed. This presents a challenge to researchers, practitioners and policymakers who wish to communicate risk and prevention information. These data suggest that the WRT sector deserves more attention from those concerned with reducing workplace injuries and fatalities. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Age Factors Aging Demography Epidemiology Morbidity Mortality Occupational Health Safety

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• Keywords:
  Accident-prevention Accident-rates Accident-statistics Age-factors Age-groups Demographic-characteristics Injuries Injury-prevention Morbidity-rates Mortality-data Mortality-rates Retail-workers Statistical-analysis Traumatic-injuries

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• ISSN:
  1066-7660
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  EID - Education and Information Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  31-33
• Volume:
  20
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20036841
• Citation:
  Synergist 2009 Mar; 20(3):31-33
• Email:
  vanderson@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  The Synergist
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:144b2125560ab2a2fa015cec219e9f324394da021f69988ceb85046cb26f98d3eddff1c40bdb7c7075b0334dc76150afa9cef7c733f0bc20c5efa9f283eaabc8
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/188095/cdc_188095_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 581.73 KB ]