MMWR: Worker's Memorial Day- April 28, 2007

Workers' Memorial Day, April 28, was established to recognize workers who died or were injured on the job. On average, nearly 16 workers in the United States die each day from injuries sustained at work, and 134 die from work-related diseases. Daily, an estimated 11,500 private-sector workers have a nonfatal work-related injury or illness, and as a result, more than half require a job transfer, work restrictions, or time away from their jobs. Approximately 9,000 workers are treated in emergency departments each day because of occupational injuries, and approximately 200 of these workers are hospitalized. In 2004, workers' compensation costs for employers totaled $87 billion.

Workers' Memorial Day 2007 also will commemorate the thirty-sixth anniversary of the creation of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the U.S. Department of Labor.

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