Occupational Injuries Among Construction Workers by Age and Related Economic Loss: Findings from Ohio Workers’ Compensation, USA: 2007–2017

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bertke S ; Bushnell PT ; Grosch JW ; Kaur H ; Lampl M ; Meyers, Alysha R. ; Naber SJ ; Wurzelbacher, Steven J.
• Description:
  Background: This study examined age-group differences in the rate, severity, and cost of injuries among construction workers to support evidence-based worker safety and health interventions in the construction industry. Methods: Ohio workers' compensation claims for construction workers were used to estimate claim rates and costs by age group. We analyzed claims data auto-coded into five event/exposure categories: transportation incidents; slips, trips, and falls (STFs); exposure to harmful substances and environments; contact with objects and equipment (COB); overexertion and bodily reaction. American Community Survey data were used to determine the percentage of workers in each age group. Results: From 2007-2017, among 72,416 accepted injury claims for approx. 166,000 construction full-time equivalent (FTE) per year, nearly half were caused by COB, followed by STFs (20%) and overexertion (20%). Claim rates related to COB and exposure to harmful substances and environments were highest among those 18e24 years old, with claim rates of 313.5 and 25.9 per 10,000 FTE, respectively. STFs increased with age, with the highest claim rates for those 55-64 years old (94.2 claims per 10,000 FTE). Overexertion claim rates increased and then declined with age, with the highest claim rate for those 35-44 years old (87.3 per 10,000 FTE). While younger workers had higher injury rates, older workers had higher proportions of lost-time claims and higher costs per claim. The total cost per FTE was highest for those 45-54 years old ($1,122 per FTE). Conclusion: The variation in rates of injury types by age suggests that age-specific prevention strategies may be useful. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Age Factors Aging Construction Industry Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Age Factors Author Keywords: Construction Workers Construction Workers Costs Injuries Occupational Health Workers Compensation
• ISSN:
  2093-7911
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Georgia ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 4 ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSI - Division of Science Integration ; DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering ; OD - Office of the Director
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  406-414
• Volume:
  14
• Issue:
  4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20068594
• Citation:
  Saf Health Work 2023 Dec; 14(4):406-414
• Contact Point Address:
  Harpriya Kaur, PhD, Office of Community Health and Hazard Assessment (OCHHA), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA
• Email:
  hkaur@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2024
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Safety and Health at Work
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:ac422cd9f18f2680f3f06b2133cb854e58b4229b44c5bbc6089ddf7c981d2b8107d8488960c5aaba91425f7622e8a01c20272a6c9436d0fe66985c2afacf01b0
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/207200/cdc_207200_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.37 MB ]