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Women have a higher rate of injuries in the workplace

On Behalf of | Mar 27, 2019 | Philadelphia Workers' Compensation Law Blog, Workplace Safety |

The National Safety Council (NSC) recently released an analysis regarding injuries in the workplace. Its findings published on its Injury Facts web site were enlightening, but not good news for women workers.

Assaults at work are disproportionately high

According to the NSC, women suffer 70 percent of all assault-related injuries that are not fatal. This added up to a total of 12,820 such incidents in 2017, which is a 60 percent jump since 2011. Conversely, 5,530 men sustained assault-related injuries that were not fatal in 2017.

Other safety issues facing women

The analysis pointed out that there were other scenarios where women were also more likely to get hurt on the job:

  • They make up 61 percent of complications due to repetitive motion
  • They make up 59 percent of injuries accidently caused by another person
  • They make up 57 percent of falls on the same level

There are also certain professions where women are disproportionally more likely to suffer nonfatal injuries or illness:

  • They make up 80 percent of these injuries and illness in the healthcare industry
  • They make up 61 percent of these injuries or illness in education
  • They make up 60 percent of these injuries or illness when performing office work

The workplace needs to be safe for all

It will be interesting to see when the NSC publishes its state-by-state analysis. However, the findings here should still be a motivating factor for local businesses here in Pennsylvania to make sure that their places of employment are safe for all workers.

Those injured are encouraged to seek medical help, but those with severe or long-term injuries should also consider filing a workers’ compensation claim or seeking damages from the ofending or negligent party. An attorney can help with either proposition, focusing on the legal aspects of any dispute so the injured workers can focus on their recovery.

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