Minneapolis, MN (CompNewsNetwork) - A recent Minnesota workplace survey estimates the state's injury and illness rate decreased significantly from 2007 to 2008. According to the annual Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, an estimated total of 87,900 nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses were reported in Minnesota's private-industry and public-sector workplaces during 2008, resulting in a rate of 4.2 cases per 100 full-time-equivalent (FTE) workers. These are the lowest number of cases and total case rate since the survey began in 1972. In 2007, there were an estimated 94,200 injury and illness cases, 4.6 cases per 100 FTE workers.
For the survey, the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) collected 2008 injury and illness records from approximately 5,100 Minnesota employers. State agencies and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) gather the survey data, which is the primary source of workplace injury and illness data nationwide …[read more]