More Than 140,000 Construction Worker Injuries Are Reported Each Year Across America, Raising Workplace Safety Concerns
Three Takeaways
- Highest rates: Vermont recorded the highest nonfatal construction injury and illness rate from 2022 to 2024, at 42.1 per 1,000 workers a year, followed by Maine (41.2) and Washington (36.9).
- Regional divide: None of the 10 highest-rate states is in the South, while 7 of the 10 lowest-rate states are. Among states with data, the West’s combined rate of 29.2 per 1,000 workers was more than double the South’s 14.3.
- Lowest rates: Louisiana recorded the lowest rate at 7.2 per 1,000 workers a year, followed by Texas (12.4) and South Carolina (12.7).
Every morning, construction crews across the country pull on their boots, check their gear, and head out to build the homes, roads, and offices their communities depend on. The work demands the same strength and focus wherever it happens, yet the toll it takes on the people doing it is far from uniform. In some states, a workplace injury is a rare interruption to the season; in others, it is a far more familiar part of life on the job site.
The study, conducted by Breakstone, White & Gluck Accident Attorneys, analyzed U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data on nonfatal construction injuries, illnesses and employment from 2022 to 2024, ranking the 41 states with available data by average annual cases per 1,000 construction workers.
The 10 States Where Construction Workers Report the Highest Injury Rates
Table 1: Highest Nonfatal Construction Injury and Illness Rates (2022 to 2024)
| Rank | State | Average Annual Injuries and Illnesses | Average Annual Construction Employment | Rate per 1,000 Workers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vermont | 667 | 15,827 | 42.1 |
| 2 | Maine | 1,400 | 33,990 | 41.2 |
| 3 | Washington | 8,000 | 216,517 | 36.9 |
| 4 | Oregon | 4,133 | 116,061 | 35.6 |
| 5 | Minnesota | 4,700 | 135,715 | 34.6 |
| 6 | Montana | 1,233 | 36,625 | 33.7 |
| 7 | Nevada | 3,567 | 108,478 | 32.9 |
| 8 | Colorado | 6,100 | 185,670 | 32.9 |
| 9 | Wisconsin | 4,233 | 136,072 | 31.1 |
| 10 | Iowa | 2,500 | 83,156 | 30.1 |
Vermont recorded the highest rate at 42.1 cases per 1,000 construction workers a year, nearly double the 41-state rate of 21.8. Maine followed at 41.2, and with small workforces on both sides, the two states are effectively tied. All 10 states recorded at least 30 cases per 1,000 workers, and none is in the South. Together, they employed 16% of construction workers in the ranked states but reported 25% of cases.
The 10 States With the Lowest Construction Injury Rates
Table 2: Lowest Nonfatal Construction Injury and Illness Rates (2022 to 2024)
| Rank (of 41) | State | Average Annual Injuries and Illnesses | Average Annual Construction Employment | Rate per 1,000 Workers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 | Virginia | 3,567 | 213,272 | 16.7 |
| 33 | New York | 6,100 | 388,008 | 15.7 |
| 34 | New Mexico | 800 | 52,281 | 15.3 |
| 35 | Illinois | 3,500 | 234,415 | 14.9 |
| 36 | Arkansas | 933 | 62,780 | 14.9 |
| 37 | West Virginia | 467 | 32,764 | 14.2 |
| 38 | Alabama | 1,333 | 102,430 | 13.0 |
| 39 | South Carolina | 1,433 | 112,961 | 12.7 |
| 40 | Texas | 10,167 | 820,375 | 12.4 |
| 41 | Louisiana | 967 | 133,554 | 7.2 |
Louisiana recorded the lowest rate at 7.2 cases per 1,000 construction workers a year. The highest rate, in Vermont, was 5.8 times greater, a gap of 34.9 cases per 1,000 workers. Seven of these 10 states are in the South, with New York, New Mexico, and Illinois the exceptions. A lower rate means fewer recorded nonfatal cases per worker, not that every job site is safer.
Western States Report More Than Double the South’s Construction Injury Rate
Table 3: Nonfatal Construction Injury and Illness Rates by Region (2022 to 2024)
| Region | Average Annual Injuries and Illnesses | Average Annual Construction Employment | Rate per 1,000 Workers | Share of Region’s Construction Employment Covered |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| West | 59,800 | 2,051,270 | 29.2 | 97% |
| Midwest | 32,433 | 1,452,944 | 22.3 | 96% |
| Northeast | 23,100 | 1,094,698 | 21.1 | 95% |
| South | 28,500 | 1,991,541 | 14.3 | 63% |
| 41 States Combined | 143,833 | 6,590,453 | 21.8 | 83% |
The West recorded 29.2 cases per 1,000 construction workers a year, more than double the South’s 14.3. The Midwest (22.3) and Northeast (21.1) sat close to the 41-state rate of 21.8. The South figure excludes Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and North Carolina, so it covers 63% of the region’s construction workforce.
The 10 States Reporting the Most Construction Injuries and Illnesses
Table 4: Highest Average Annual Construction Injury and Illness Counts (2022 to 2024)
| Rank | State | Average Annual Injuries and Illnesses | Average Annual Construction Employment | Rate per 1,000 Workers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 26,367 | 912,387 | 28.9 |
| 2 | Texas | 10,167 | 820,375 | 12.4 |
| 3 | Washington | 8,000 | 216,517 | 36.9 |
| 4 | Pennsylvania | 6,733 | 260,045 | 25.9 |
| 5 | Colorado | 6,100 | 185,670 | 32.9 |
| 5 | New York | 6,100 | 388,008 | 15.7 |
| 7 | Minnesota | 4,700 | 135,715 | 34.6 |
| 8 | Arizona | 4,567 | 211,442 | 21.6 |
| 9 | Wisconsin | 4,233 | 136,072 | 31.1 |
| 10 | Ohio | 4,200 | 240,139 | 17.5 |
California reported the most cases, about 26,367 a year or 18% of the 41-state total, yet ranked 11th by rate. Texas reported the second-most cases but had the second-lowest rate (12.4), as its cases were spread across more than 820,000 workers. Washington was the only state in the top three for both cases and rate. Case counts largely track workforce size, which is why rates give the fairer comparison.
Methodology
Breakstone, White & Gluck analyzed U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII) estimates of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses in the construction industry for 2022, 2023 and 2024, alongside average annual construction employment from the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). For each state, the available annual case estimates were averaged (New Mexico’s 2022 estimate is unavailable, so its average covers 2023 and 2024), divided by average annual employment and multiplied by 1,000, giving cases per 1,000 employed workers rather than BLS’s official incidence rate per 100 full-time equivalent workers. States were ranked by unrounded rate; combined and regional (U.S. Census regions) rates divide summed cases by summed employment, and daily figures divide average annual cases by 365. Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Mississippi, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, and South Dakota have no published SOII state estimates, and North Carolina’s estimates were unavailable in the dataset, so the 41 ranked states cover 83% of construction employment across the 50 states.
Data Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (State Data): https://www.bls.gov/iif/state-data.htm
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (Data Tables): https://data.bls.gov/cew/apps/data_views/data_views.htm#tab=Tables
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Safety and Health Definitions: https://www.bls.gov/iif/definitions/occupational-safety-and-health-definitions.htm
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Handbook of Methods: SOII: https://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/soii/
- Research Dataset: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kG9d0NxmLwPrxOQXNW1UnEEyLs3UTVY8i9bPxKxakbE/edit?gid=0#gid=0
- Study by: https://www.bwglaw.com/
About Breakstone, White & Gluck
Breakstone, White & Gluck is a Boston-based personal injury law firm with more than 30 years of experience representing victims of negligence, catastrophic injury, and wrongful death. The firm has been recognized among the Top 100 Super Lawyers in Massachusetts and New England.
