News Notes: Workplace Fatalities Decline In California

New California Division of Labor Statistics figures show that workplace fatalities declined last year even as employment numbers rose. In 2003, 456 of the state’s 16,283,000 workers were fatally injured on the job, down from 478 out of 16,215,000 in 2002. The causes of fatalities in 2003 were transportation incidents, accounting for 38 percent of deaths, followed by assaults and violent acts (18 percent), accidents involving contact with objects and equipment (17 percent), falls from ladders and roofs (16 percent), exposure to harmful substances or environments (8 percent), and fires and explosions (3 percent).