As this blog has reported before, our state has a relatively good track record for workplace safety, at least in some respects. The good news for residents of the greater Twin Cities area is that the state continues to improve in its effort to prevent workplace accidents.
According to numbers reported by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, which among other things administers the workers’ compensation program, as of 2017, our state enjoyed its lowest ever rate of workplace accidents. Specifically, there were 3.3 reportable work-related illnesses and injuries per 100 full-time workers in this state, a drop from 3.4 in 2016.
As this blog has reported before, our state has a relatively good track record for workplace safety, at least in some respects. The good news for residents of the greater Twin Cities area is that the state continues to improve in its effort to prevent workplace accidents.
According to numbers reported by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, which among other things administers the workers’ compensation program, as of 2017, our state enjoyed its lowest ever rate of workplace accidents. Specifically, there were 3.3 reportable work-related illnesses and injuries per 100 full-time workers in this state, a drop from 3.4 in 2016.
Perhaps the best news about these numbers is that they show a continuing trend toward improved safety in workplaces. Since about 2004, the rate of workplace injuries due to accidents and work-related illnesses has decreased 40 percent.
Still, the numbers do not paint a perfect picture. There were still 72,500 different workers who had reportable injuries and illnesses at work in 2017, which is only a slight decrease from the 2016 number, 73,600. Part of the reason our state’s rate of injuries decreased is that we had an employment boom, going from 2.72 million employees included within these numbers in 2016 to 2.81 million in 2017. Moreover, the national rate of workplace injuries is 3.1 per 100 full-time workers, which is a bit lower than the state-wide rate.
It is still good to know that safety-wise, Minnesota is not a bad place to work and is taking steps in the right direction. However, with over 70,000 workers getting hurt or sickened in this state due to their jobs, it is likely that many of them will need help securing the workers’ compensation benefits to which they are entitled.
