Ranching and farming dangerous occupations?

Friday, May 6, 2011

Policemen and firefighters must put themselves in harm's way as part of their jobs. But less well known is that ranchers and farmers are much more likely to be fatally injured at work, according Marketwatch magazine, quoting statistics from the U.S. Labor Department.

The rate of fatalities in 2009 for ranchers and farmers was 38.5 per 100,000 full time workers, versus 4.4 for fire fighters and 13.1 for police and sheriff's patrol officers. Statistically, professional fire fighting is only slightly more dangerous than "civilian work" where the fatality rate was 3.3 per 100,000.

Firemen and cops do get injured; the injury rate was 512 per 100,000 for firefighters and 676 for cops as measured in time off work. For an average worker, the rate was 117 per 100,000. Transit and intercity bus drivers have a rate of 892. State psychiatric aids have a rate of 1,459.

More dangerous than farming is commercial fishing. Fishers die at the rate of 200 per 100,000 workers annually. BF