News Notes: Injury And Illness Rates Continue To Decline

California’s workplace injury and illness rates continued to drop in 1999 despite record high employment, according to recent data compiled by the state Division of Labor Statistics and Research. Mirroring a national downward trend, California’s injury rate fell to 6.3 injuries per 100 full-time employees—down from 6.7 in 1998—the lowest rate ever in the 29 years the data has been collected. The new figure represents a 36 percent decrease from an all-time high of 9.9 injuries per 100 employees a decade ago. The national injury and illness rate for private employers also plummeted from 8.8 cases per 100 employees to 6.3 cases between 1990 and 1999. A variety of factors may be responsible for the drop, including changes in reporting practices, better job safety, economic improvement and the shift from manufacturing to service jobs.