New AFL-CIO Report Finds Worker Deaths on the Job Continue, Will Worsen Under Trump Administration Policies
Top Cut:
Workers are dying and being injured on the job, and the Trump administration and DOGE are putting them at greater risk by enacting policies that will create deplorable working conditions, according to a new report released today by the AFL-CIO.
Why It Matters:
Ahead of Workers Memorial Day, the AFL-CIO released its 34th annual “Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect” report, a comprehensive analysis of the state of workers’ health and safety at the national and state levels. Findings include:
- Inadequate workplace safety laws and policies resulted in the deaths of 5,283 workers on the job in 2023, the latest year of data available, and an estimated 135,304 workers from occupational diseases.
- Black and Latino workers are still disproportionately dying on the job, both at rates higher than the national job fatality rate.
- The report shows 659 Black worker deaths, the second-highest number in more than two decades.
- The report also shows 1,250 Latino worker deaths, making Latino workers the group at the greatest risk of dying on the job among all demographics.
“Every worker has the fundamental right to come home safe at the end of their workday. But for too many workers, that basic right is under attack,” said Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO. “Workers fought and died for generations for the health and safety laws and protections we have today, and this year’s report shows we need to do even more. The Trump administration and DOGE are gutting the federal agencies that hold bosses accountable for endangering workers, firing the federal workers who monitor and research health hazards, indicating that they will repeal crucial worker safety regulations, and giving billionaires like Elon Musk the power to access and even manipulate OSHA whistleblower records. We can’t bring back the thousands of workers lost each year, but we can fight to prevent more devastation to working families across this country and demand that the Trump administration reverse course.”