The 2005 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a slight decline in overall workplace fatalities, but a worsening situation for many of the nation’s most vulnerable workers, including especially alarming increases in on the job deaths among people of color and children.

Our workplaces should be getting safer, not more dangerous. Yet six years of Bush Administration neglect and failure of workplace health and safety have put millions of workers at increased danger. It’s clear that a change in direction and leadership is needed to protect workers on the job and to improve their lives.

While some groups of workers saw improvements, in 2005 job deaths increased among Latinos, Blacks, children, immigrants and agriculture workers. Sadly, but not surprisingly, these numbers confirm that under the Bush Administration, workers at the bottom of the economic ladder are paying a very heavy price.

Of the 5,702 fatal injuries recorded, 917 were among Hispanic or Latino workers, up from 902 deaths in 2004. Immigrant Latino workers bore the brunt of this increased toll, with deaths increasing to 625 from 596 in 2004.

Among Black workers, job fatalities increased for the third year in a row, to 577 recorded deaths compared to 546 deaths in 2004.

Young workers also saw increased fatalities, with deaths for those under 20 years of age up 18 percent to 166 deaths. But even more alarming is the increase in deaths among workers younger than 16. Among these young workers, job-related deaths skyrocketed by 85 percent, with 24 children losing their lives at work.

The situation was also grim for the nation’s agriculture workers with 714 workers killed in the agriculture, forestry and fishing industries, up from 669 deaths in 2004.

There was a sharp increase in the number of workers dying from heat exposure – a particular hazard for agriculture workers - up from 18 deaths in 2004 to 47 deaths in 2005.

And workers in Wisconsin, Montana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Arizona, South Carolina, Maryland, Arkansas, Texas and Missouri all saw significant increases in job fatalities, with workplace deaths in three of these states (Wisconsin, Montana and Mississippi) increasing by more than 25 percent.

These reported deaths are from 2005, and don’t include the recent fatalities from this year’s coal mine disasters, which now stand at 37 deaths for 2006. These fatality numbers also don’t include deaths from occupational diseases, which are estimated to be 50,000 to 60,000 a year.

Contact Steve Smith 202-637-5018