Dive Brief:

• When it comes to workplace injuries, the most frequent cause by a fairly wide margin is material handling at 32%, according to an analysis by The Travelers Companies, Inc., the country’s largest workers' compensation insurance carrier.
• Following material handling were slips, trips and falls (16%), being struck by or colliding with an object (10%), accidents involving tools (7%) and traumas occurring over time, such as repetitive stress injuries (4%). Regarding missed work time, on average, strains and sprains resulted in 57 missed work days, followed by cuts and punctures at 24 days. Of the most commonly-resulting injuries, inflammation and fractures caused the most time away from work at 91 and 78 days, respectively.
• Travelers' Injury Impact Report analyzed more than 1.5 million workers' compensation claims filed between 2010 and 2014 from a variety of business sizes and industries.

Dive Insight:

Analysis of the workers' compensation claim data revealed that certain causes of accidents and resulting injuries were more prevalent in some industries than others. For example, while material handling accidents were the top cause of injuries overall, these were especially common in the manufacturing and retail industries, causing nearly 40% of injuries in both sectors. 

For the retail and construction industries, falls (from heights) was among the top causes of injuries. The oil and gas industry was the only segment in which motor vehicle accidents were one of the most frequent injury causes.

"Even seemingly minor injuries, such as strains or sprains, can substantially impact an employee and slow a business’s operations and productivity," said Woody Dwyer, Second Vice President, Workers Compensation, Risk Control, Travelers, in a statement. "The most common injuries we see can often be prevented if the proper safety measures are in place, if safety issues are promptly addressed and if leaders continuously emphasize a culture of safety with employees."