It got more dangerous to work in Georgia in 2014.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 152 Georgians who died on the job two years ago, a 25 percent increase from 2013.
Truck drivers and other transportation-related accidents accounted for 62 of the deaths. Falls, slips and trips killed 29 Georgians. And 22 died while working machines and other equipment.
Nationwide, 4,821 Americans died on the job, according to the BLS which designates April 28 as Workers’ Memorial Day. A year earlier, 4,585 died.
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“Every day, millions of Americans leave their homes and report to jobs that provide for their families, strengthen our communities and grow our economy,” U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez said in a statement Thursday. “Too many of them – on average, 13 workers a day – don’t make it back at the end of their shift.”
The rise in workplace fatalities tracks the economy’s health. Prior to the Great Recession, in 2006 for example, 201 Georgians died at work. In 2010, with the economy still hurting, 108 Georgians were killed.
Men represented the lion’s share — 139 —of the 152 workplace deaths last year. One-third of the dead were between 45 and 54 years old.
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