Safety Management

Truck drivers have the most work-related injuries and illnesses

Truck drivers had the most lost-workday injuries and illnesses, more than 112,000, of any employee category, according to 2002 data compiled by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Nursing aides, orderlies and attendants ranked second, with 79,000 total injuries; nonconstruction laborers were third, with 76,600 total injuries.

Sprains and strains were the most prevalent cause of lost-workday cases - accounting for more than 617,000 of the 1.4 million total cases. Sprains and strains combined with bruises and contusions, cuts and lacerations, and fractures accounted for two-thirds of all cases.

BLS said musculoskeletal disorders of the muscles, nerves, tendons, joints, cartilage and spinal discs accounted for 487,900, or 34 percent, of the injuries and illnesses. Carpal tunnel syndrome was responsible for 22,600 cases, while tendonitis cases totaled 9,300.