Workplace safety
The US workplace injury rate: 2.4 per 100 workers
The US private-industry workplace injury and illness rate was 2.4 per 100 full-time workers in 2023, according to the BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses.
Separately, OSHA's Injury Tracking Application summarized Form 300A data from more than 385,000 establishments and reported more than 18 million days away from work for that reporting set - not a restatement of the national BLS rate.
This page keeps those two scopes apart so the safety baseline stays honest when robot incidents are put in context.
Data covers US private-industry work-related injuries and illnesses, 2023 (OSHA/BLS). Last reviewed by a human editor before publication.
The figures and where they come from
Each figure is rated for how safely you can cite it today. Ratings judge current usability, not whether a number was ever correct.
| Figure | What it is | Source | Citation Confidence | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.4 per 100 workers | Injury and illness rate (2023) | [A] | High | BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses national estimate for private industry in 2023: recordable injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time equivalent workers. |
| more than 18 million | Days away from work (OSHA Form 300A / ITA reporters) | [A] | Medium | From OSHA ITA Form 300A submissions covering more than 385,000 establishments in 2023 - not the full private-industry workforce counted in the BLS rate. |
Why the numbers disagree
The 2.4-per-100 rate is a BLS national survey estimate for private industry. The more-than-18-million days-away figure comes from OSHA Form 300A / ITA establishment reporting (more than 385,000 establishments). They are related topics, not one continuous count of the same injuries.
Reading either figure as a manufacturing or robot-cell number is a mistake. The BLS rate averages every private sector; the ITA days-away total covers the establishments that submitted Form 300A data.
The value of the baseline is proportion. Robot-related incidents are rare and specific against a large ordinary workplace-injury record. Keeping the scopes separate keeps that comparison honest.
How to cite these figures
Cite 2.4 injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers as the 2023 BLS private-industry rate, and say it is an all-industry survey baseline.
Cite the more-than-18-million days-away figure as OSHA Form 300A / ITA establishment reporting from more than 385,000 establishments, not as the severity of the BLS rate cases.
Use both only as context for robot safety, not as manufacturing or robot figures.
Where people go wrong
Saying “those injuries” from the 2.4 rate caused all 18+ million days away. The days-away total is from a different OSHA Form 300A / ITA reporting set.
Reading the 2.4-per-100 all-industry rate as a manufacturing or robot-cell figure.
Quoting either figure to argue robots are safe or dangerous. They are context, not robot-specific measurements.
How we checked
The 2.4-per-100 rate comes from the BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses summary reprinted in OSHA's 2023 work-related injury and illness summary. We retrieved the document and confirmed the rate in the extracted text.
The more-than-18-million days-away figure is stated in the same OSHA summary as the result of Form 300A information received through the Injury Tracking Application from more than 385,000 establishments. We treat that as a separate scope from the BLS national rate.
We present both figures as context for robot-safety pages and are explicit that neither is a manufacturing or robot statistic.
Full source list
Primary sources, with live links. Every figure above traces to one of these.
- [A]U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration2024
OSHA, "2023 Work-Related Injury and Illness Summary" (BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses)
https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/OSHA_2023_Work-Related_Injury_and_Illness_Summary.pdf
Common questions
- What is the US workplace injury rate?
- 2.4 recordable injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in private industry in 2023, per the BLS Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses as summarized by OSHA.
- Where does the 18 million days-away figure come from?
- OSHA's Injury Tracking Application summary of Form 300A data from more than 385,000 establishments for 2023. It is not a restatement of the national BLS rate, and it does not cover every workplace in the country.
- Is that a manufacturing or robot figure?
- No. The BLS rate is an all-private-industry survey average. The days-away total is limited to establishments that submitted Form 300A data through OSHA's ITA. Manufacturing and robot-cell risks are separate questions.
- Why cite these numbers on a robotics site?
- As context. Robot incidents are rare and specific against a large ordinary workplace-injury record, and keeping the scopes separate keeps the comparison honest.
More data, traced to source
- Robot workplace deaths: what the public record does and doesn't show
The figure of about 41 US robot-related deaths is quoted widely, but it cannot be verified through any free primary source, and the same agency has published two different totals. This page traces what is and is not documentable about robot workplace fatalities.