Much of the country is working from home during the coronavirus pandemic. There are many jobs that can’t be done from the safety and comfort of the worker’s house, however.
Some of these jobs are among the most dangerous in the country. AdvisorSmith, a business insurance resource, used data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to determine the least safe occupations. For its study, AdvisorSmith examined 263 professions with employment of at least 50,000 workers nationwide.
5. Garbage collectors
- Fatal injury rate: 34 per 100,000 workers
- Total deaths (2018): 37
- Salary: $42,100
- Most common fatal accidents: transportation incidents
Garbage collectors drive a truck through neighborhoods and empty garbage bins and dumpsters into the trucks. The most common cause of death for these workers is being struck by a garbage truck or other vehicle.
4. Roofers
- Fatal injury rate: 41 per 100,000 workers
- Total deaths (2018): 96
- Salary: $42,100
- Most common fatal accidents: falls, slips, trips
Roofers generally use ladders or other equipment to climb on top of buildings. The most common cause of fatal work injury for roofers is falling off roofs or ladders.
3. Derrick operators in oil, gas, and mining
- Fatal injury rate: 46 per 100,000 workers
- Total deaths (2018): 20
- Salary: $51,390
- Most common fatal accidents: transportation incidents, contact with objects and equipment
A derrick is a structure above a well that holds the drilling equipment. The derrick may also include pumps to extract the oil or other materials from the well. Transportation incidents and contact with objects and equipment were the two leading causes of death for these workers.
2. Aircraft pilots and flight engineers
- Fatal injury rate: 53 per 100,000 workers
- Total deaths (2018): 70
- Salary: $121,430
- Most common fatal accidents: transportation incidents
Pilots not only fly and navigate aircraft, but they also are responsible for checking the condition of aircraft before and after flights, ensuring the aircraft is balanced, and planning for fuel and flight plans. The majority of aircraft pilot fatalities occur in crashes of privately owned planes and helicopters rather than commercial aircraft.
1. Logging workers
- Fatal injury rate: 111 per 100,000 workers
- Total deaths (2018): 56
- Salary: $41,230
- Most common fatal accidents: contact with objects and equipment
The most dangerous job in America is logging, AdvisorSmith’s analysis found. Logging workers had a fatal accident rate that was 33 times the average job nationwide. Logging worker deaths are most often caused by contact with logging machines or logs.
Many of these jobs mirrored an earlier analysis by 24/7 Wall St. The No. 2 profession on its list, however, was fisher. Being a fisher means working with nets and gear on slippery decks. If an accident happens, medical help is often far away. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the majority of fatalities are due to drowning.
For the remainder of its top 25 list, visit AdvisorSmith’s website by clicking here.
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