Fatal work injuries totaled 131 in 2020 for Michigan, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Jason Palmer noted that the number of work-related fatalities in Michigan was down from the previous year. (See chart 1.) Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 182 in 1999 to a low of 94 in 2009.

Nationwide, a total of 4,764 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2020, an 11-percent decrease from 5,333 in 2019, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI). The 4,764 fatal occupational injuries in 2020 represents the lowest annual number since 2013.

Fatal event or exposure

In Michigan, transportation incidents resulted in 41 fatal work injuries and accounted for 31 percent of all fatal workplace injuries in the state. (See chart 2 and table 1.) Worker deaths from transportation incidents were down from 56 over the year.

Contact with objects or equipment was the second-most frequent fatal work event with 27 fatalities, followed by violence or other injuries by persons or animals with 26 fatalities. Fatal injuries from contact with objects or equipment were up from 24 over the year, and fatalities from violence or other injuries by persons or animals were down from 38. Falls, slips, or trips resulted in 22 work-related deaths compared to 21 in 2019.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2020, accounting for 37 percent of fatal work injuries. Falls, slips, and trips was the second-most common fatal event (17 percent).

Industry

The private construction industry sector had the highest number of fatalities in Michigan with 23, down from 31 in the previous year. (See table 2.) Falls, slips, or trips resulted in 9 of the 23 fatalities in the industry. The specialty trade contractors subsector accounted for 8 of the 23 fatal workplace injuries in the construction industry.

The private agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industry sector had 22 fatal workplace injuries, down from 33 in the previous year. The crop production subsector accounted for 16, or 73 percent, of the fatal injuries in this industry.

Occupation

The construction and extraction occupational group had the highest number of fatal workplace injuries with 26. (See table 3.) Construction trades workers accounted for 20 of the 26 fatalities among construction and extraction workers. The transportation and material moving occupational group had the second-highest number of fatal workplace injuries with 24. Driver/sales workers and truck drivers suffered 13 of the work-related deaths within the transportation and material moving group.

Additional highlights

• Men accounted for 95 percent of the work-related fatalities in Michigan, compared to the 92-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 30 percent of the fatalities for men in Michigan.

• White non-Hispanics accounted for 77 percent of those who died from a workplace injury. Nationwide, this group accounted for 61 percent of work-related deaths.

• Workers 25-54 years old accounted for 50 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2020, compared to 56 percent of on-the-job fatalities nationally.

• Of the 131 fatal work injuries in Michigan, 74 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for wage and salary workers was transportation incidents; contact with objects and equipment was the most frequent fatal event for self-employed workers.

Technical Note

Background of the program. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), part of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Safety and Health Statistics (OSHS) program, is a count of all fatalities resulting from workplace injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year. The CFOI uses a variety of state, federal, and independent data sources to identify, verify, and describe fatal work injuries. This ensures counts are as complete and accurate as possible. For the 2020 national data, over 21,600 unique source documents were reviewed as part of the data collection process. For technical information and definitions for the CFOI, see the BLS Handbook of Methods at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/home.htm and the CFOI definitions at www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm.

Federal/State agency coverage. The CFOI includes data for all fatal work injuries, some of which may be outside the scope of other agencies or regulatory coverage. Comparisons between CFOI counts and those released by other agencies should account for the different coverage requirements and definitions used by each agency. For more information on the scope of CFOI, see www.bls.gov/iif/cfoiscope.htm and www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/concepts.htm.

Acknowledgments. BLS thanks the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs for their efforts in collecting accurate, comprehensive, and useful data on fatal work injuries. BLS also appreciates the efforts of all federal, state, local, and private sector entities that provided source documents used to identify fatal work injuries. Among these agencies are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; the National Transportation Safety Board; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Mine Safety and Health Administration; the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (Federal Employees' Compensation and Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation divisions); the Federal Railroad Administration; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; state vital statistics registrars, coroners, and medical examiners; state departments of health, labor, and industrial relations and workers' compensation agencies; state and local police departments; and state farm bureaus.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Fatal occupational injuries by event or exposure, Michigan, 2019–20

Event or exposure (1)	2019	2020
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	164	131	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	38	26	20
Intentional injury by person	35	25	19
Intentional injury by other person	12	11	8
Self-inflicted injury--intentional	23	14	11
Shooting--intentional self-harm	12	6	5
Hanging, strangulation, asphyxiation--intentional self-harm	9	6	5
Transportation incidents	56	41	31
Aircraft incidents	9	2	2
Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing	7	1	1
Aircraft crash during takeoff or landing--into structure, object, or ground	--	1	1
Pedestrian vehicular incident	5	9	7
Pedestrian struck by vehicle in work zone	1	3	2
Pedestrian struck by forward-moving vehicle in work zone	1	3	2
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	32	25	19
Roadway collision with other vehicle	22	12	9
Roadway collision--moving in same direction	6	7	5
Roadway collision--moving in opposite directions, oncoming	2	2	2
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	9	3	2
Roadway noncollision incident	1	10	8
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	9	5	4
Falls, slips, trips	21	22	17
Falls to lower level	17	16	12
Other fall to lower level	11	12	9
Other fall to lower level less than 6 feet	--	3	2
Other fall to lower level 21 to 25 feet	--	3	2
Contact with objects and equipment	24	27	21
Struck by object or equipment	20	20	15
Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport	12	9	7
Struck or run over by rolling powered vehicle	--	3	2
Struck by falling object or equipment--other than powered vehicle	5	9	7
Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects	2	5	4
Caught in running equipment or machinery	2	5	4
Caught in running equipment or machinery during maintenance, cleaning	1	2	2
Struck, caught, or crushed in collapsing structure, equipment, or material	2	2	2
Excavation or trenching cave-in	--	2	2
Footnotes: (1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, Michigan, 2019–20

Industry (1)	2019	2020
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	164	131	100
Private industry (2)	157	115	88
Goods producing	--	--	--
Natural resources and mining	36	23	18
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	33	22	17
Crop production	18	16	12
Oilseed and grain farming	9	4	3
Corn farming	7	3	2
Other grain farming	--	1	1
Oilseed and grain combination farming	--	1	1
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (3)	3	1	1
Mining (except oil and gas)	2	1	1
Nonmetallic mineral mining and quarrying	--	1	1
Sand, gravel, clay, and ceramic and refractory minerals mining and quarrying	--	1	1
Construction	31	23	18
Construction	31	23	18
Construction of buildings	--	8	6
Residential building construction	--	7	5
Residential building construction	--	7	5
Residential remodelers	--	4	3
Nonresidential building construction	--	1	1
Commercial and institutional building construction	--	1	1
Heavy and civil engineering construction	5	7	5
Specialty trade contractors	--	8	6
Foundation, structure, and building exterior contractors	--	4	3
Roofing contractors	--	4	3
Building equipment contractors	--	3	2
Plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning contractors	--	3	2
Other specialty trade contractors	--	1	1
Site preparation contractors	--	1	1
Manufacturing	--	13	10
Manufacturing	--	13	10
Food manufacturing	--	3	2
Apparel manufacturing	--	1	1
Cut and sew apparel manufacturing	--	1	1
Other cut and sew apparel manufacturing	--	1	1
Wood product manufacturing	--	2	2
Plastics and rubber products manufacturing	--	1	1
Transportation equipment manufacturing	--	4	3
Service providing (4)	--	--	--
Trade, transportation, and utilities	40	24	18
Wholesale trade	5	6	5
Retail trade	17	8	6
Electronics and appliance stores	1	1	1
Electronics and appliance stores	1	1	1
Clothing and clothing accessories stores	--	1	1
Clothing stores	--	1	1
Family clothing stores	--	1	1
General merchandise stores	--	1	1
General merchandise stores, including warehouse clubs and supercenters	--	1	1
General merchandise stores, including warehouse clubs and supercenters	--	1	1
Miscellaneous store retailers	1	1	1
Other miscellaneous store retailers	--	1	1
All other miscellaneous store retailers	--	1	1
Transportation and warehousing	18	10	8
Truck transportation	12	7	5
Professional and business services	--	9	7
Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services	11	9	7
Educational and health services	5	5	4
Educational services	--	2	2
Educational services	--	2	2
Technical and trade schools	--	1	1
Technical and trade schools	--	1	1
Flight training	--	1	1
Other schools and instruction	--	1	1
Health care and social assistance	5	3	2
Leisure and hospitality	7	--	--
Arts, entertainment, and recreation	3	5	4
Other services, except public administration	8	10	8
Other services, except public administration	8	10	8
Government (5)	7	16	12
Federal government	--	3	2
State government	3	2	2
Local government	4	11	8
Footnotes: (1) CFOI has used several versions of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) since 2003 to define industry. For complete information on the version of NAICS used in this year, see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. (2) Cases where ownership is unknown are included in private industry counts. (3) Includes fatal injuries at all establishments categorized as Mining (Sector 21) in the North American Industry Classification System, including establishments not governed by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) rules and reporting, such as those in oil and gas extraction. (4) Cases where industry is unknown are included in the service sector counts. (5) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry. Cases classified as foreign government and other government are included in all government counts, but not displayed separately.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 3. Fatal occupational injuries by occupation, Michigan, 2019–20

Occupation (1)	2019	2020
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	164	131	100
Management occupations	26	15	11
Other management occupations	24	14	11
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	22	13	10
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	22	13	10
Construction managers	--	1	1
Construction managers	--	1	1
Educational instruction and library occupations	--	2	2
Other teachers and instructors	--	1	1
Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations	2	4	3
Protective service occupations	--	9	7
Other protective service workers	--	2	2
Security guards and gambling surveillance officers	--	1	1
Security guards	--	1	1
Food preparation and serving related occupations	3	1	1
Supervisors of food preparation and serving workers	--	1	1
Supervisors of food preparation and serving workers	--	1	1
First-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers	--	1	1
Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations	7	5	4
Supervisors of building and grounds cleaning and maintenance workers	1	1	1
First-line supervisors of building and grounds cleaning and maintenance workers	1	1	1
First-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers	1	1	1
Building cleaning and pest control workers	--	2	2
Building cleaning workers	--	2	2
Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners	--	1	1
Maids and housekeeping cleaners	--	1	1
Grounds maintenance workers	5	2	2
Grounds maintenance workers	5	2	2
Landscaping and groundskeeping workers	4	2	2
Sales and related occupations	14	7	5
Supervisors of sales workers	5	3	2
First-line supervisors of sales workers	5	3	2
Retail sales workers	6	3	2
Other sales and related workers	3	1	1
Real estate brokers and sales agents	--	1	1
Office and administrative support occupations	--	3	2
Material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers	--	3	2
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations	10	8	6
Agricultural workers	6	8	6
Miscellaneous agricultural workers	6	8	6
Construction and extraction occupations	32	26	20
Supervisors of construction and extraction workers	8	3	2
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	8	3	2
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	8	3	2
Construction trades workers	23	20	15
Construction laborers	4	8	6
Construction laborers	4	8	6
Construction equipment operators	4	1	1
Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators	4	1	1
Electricians	4	3	2
Electricians	4	3	2
Roofers	--	4	3
Roofers	--	4	3
Extraction workers	--	1	1
Surface mining machine operators and earth drillers	--	1	1
Excavating and loading machine and dragline operators, surface mining	--	1	1
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations	16	12	9
Supervisors of installation, maintenance, and repair workers	--	1	1
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers	--	1	1
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers	--	1	1
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics, installers, and repairers	8	7	5
Automotive technicians and repairers	--	5	4
Production occupations	9	8	6
Metal workers and plastic workers	--	2	2
Other production occupations	5	3	2
Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers	--	1	1
Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers	--	1	1
Transportation and material moving occupations	31	24	18
Air transportation workers	2	1	1
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers	2	1	1
Airline pilots, copilots, and flight engineers	--	1	1
Motor vehicle operators	22	13	10
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	21	13	10
Material moving workers	7	10	8
Footnotes: (1) CFOI has used several versions of the Standard Occupation Classification (SOC) system since 2003 to define occupation. For complete information on the version of SOC used in this year, see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Cases where occupation is unknown are included in the total.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.

Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by selected demographic characteristics, Michigan, 2019–20

Worker characteristics	2019	2020
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	164	131	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	111	97	74
Self-employed (2)	53	34	26
Gender
Men	151	125	95
Women	13	6	5
Age (3)
Under 16 years	1	1	1
18 to 19 years	3	1	1
20 to 24 years	9	7	5
25 to 34 years	27	17	13
35 to 44 years	20	24	18
45 to 54 years	40	24	18
55 to 64 years	30	29	22
65 years and over	33	28	21
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White, non-Hispanic	133	101	77
Black or African-American, non-Hispanic	18	14	11
Hispanic or Latino	7	11	8
Footnotes: (1) May include volunteers and workers receiving other types of compensation. Cases where employment status is unknown are included in the counts of wage and salary workers. (2) Includes self-employed workers, owners of unincorporated businesses and farms, paid and unpaid family workers, and may include some owners of incorporated businesses or members of partnerships. (3) Information may not be available for all age groups. (4) Persons identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. The race categories shown exclude data for Hispanics and Latinos. Cases where ethnicity is unknown are included in counts of non-Hispanic workers.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. For complete information on how the data are coded and presented see our definitions page at https://www.bls.gov/iif/oshcfdef.htm. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria. CFOI fatal injury counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event.