Fishing Most Dangerous Job in America

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries the American workplace was a slightly safer place to work in than before. The American workplace recorded 4,609 workplace deaths in 2011, 81 less than the number who lost their lives the previous year, whilst at work.

However, the fact remains that there are jobs in America which are dangerous and hazardous to life. Which then are the most unsafe and perilous professions of them all?

Of the Bureau’s listing of the five deadliest jobs the most treacherous job is that of being a fisherman. For every 100,000 full-time workers, 121.2 lost their lives at work. The Bureau reports that last year 40 fishermen lost their lives. Earlier the profession was even more dangerous.

Leslie Hughes, who founded the North Pacific Fishing Vessel Owners’ Association Vessel Safety Program, which trains fishermen in safety skills taking about conditions that existed earlier said, “Conditions were so bad, the loss of life and vessels was so great that getting insurance was starting to be a major problem.”

Loggers follow closely behind. The sharp unwieldy sharp-toothed equipment, falling trees have long made logging one of the most hazardous trades. Its fatality rate per 100,000 workers was 102.4, with 64 loggers succumbing to workplace injuries the previous years.

“You look up and see a hanging branch, no big deal. But it can fall and kill you,” said Eric Johnson, a former logger and now editor of “The Northern Logger.”

Pilots are also in a profession that is fraught with risks with the Bureau reporting 57 death per 100,000. 72 pilots lost their lives last year, thanks to flying to isolated towns in facing unchallenging terrain and unsafe weather conditions.

Sanitation workers are to be pitied more than others, not only are they exposed to some of the worst odors that can be imagined, they are exposed to unsanitary conditions all the time. Volatile chemicals, acids and flammable materials are often found in the garbage bags. 34 sanitation workers lost their lives last year with the Bureau saying that for every 100,000 workers 41.2 lose their lives.

Roofers by the very nature of their job, working several stories above the ground, know that it is a very dangerous profession. One slip and you could come crashing to the ground.  Last year 56 roofers lost their lives while at work. Apart from falls other dangers, include electrocutions, chemical exposures and hoisting accidents. 31.8 workers lose their lives for every 100,000 thousand workers.

These are 5 of the most dangerous professions for Americans. However, stronger legislation, risk assessment, implementation of fatality prevention measures and better equipment, are making the workplace a much safer and more secure place to work in.

When compared to what it was five or six years back the workplace is certainly safer. In 2006, worker injuries were higher by 1,200 as compared to modern times.

Of the total number of workers who lost their lives at the workplace in 2011, a major portion lost them to transportation-related accidents, 17 percent lost their lives to violence and injuries cause by animals and people, both avoidable deaths, with a little more caution and monitoring. Real workplace deaths owing to unsafe equipment or improper safety precautions were 15 percent.

According to preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics an average of 12 workers die on the job every day. Safety Analysts believe that most of these deaths are avoidable. Even though with each year, the number of fatal workplace accidents is lessening, there is considerable room for improvement.