TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2023//
TI  - Trends in fatal occupational injury rates among older workers before and after the Great Recession of 2008
JO  - Occupational and environmental medicine
A1  - Richey, Morgan Miller
A1  - Golightly, Yvonne
A1  - Marshall, Stephen William
A1  - Novicoff, Wendy
A1  - Keil, Alexander
A1  - Nocera, Maryalice
A1  - Richardson, David B.
SP  - ePub
EP  - ePub
VL  - ePub
IS  - ePub
N2  - BACKGROUND: Older workers experience higher rates of fatal occupational injury than younger workers worldwide. In North Carolina, the population of older workers more than doubled between 2000 and 2017. In 2008, the Great Recession changed occupational patterns among all age groups. We examined annual rates and distribution of fatal occupational injuries experienced by older workers, comparing the pre-recession period (2000-2007) to the post-recession period (2009-2017). <br><br>METHODS: Detailed information on all fatal occupational injuries during the period between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2017 were abstracted from the records of the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner and the office of vital records. The decennial Census and American Community Survey were used to estimate the population at risk and derive annual rates of fatal occupational injury. <br><br>RESULTS: During the study period, 537 occupational fatalities occurred among workers 55+ years of age. The rate of fatal occupational injury among older workers declined 2.8% per year, with a 7.7% yearly decline in the pre-recession period compared with a 1.4% increase per year in the post-recession period. Workers 65+ years of age experienced rate increases in both periods. The highest rates of unintentional fatal occupational injury (injuries that were not purposefully inflicted) were observed in forestry, fishing hunting and trapping, and wood building manufacturing. Intentional fatal occupational injury rates (homicide, suicide) were highest in transportation, gas/service stations and grocery/food stores. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: Older workers have persistently high rates of fatal occupational injury in North Carolina before and after the Great Recession.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1351-0711
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2022-108587
ID  - ref1
ER  -