US poultry industry illness and injury rates remain low

The incidence of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses in the US poultry sector, which includes slaughter and processing, continues to remain low, according to the 2010 Injury and Illness Report recently released by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The total recordable poultry processing illness and injury rate for 2010 was 5.9 cases per 100 full-time workers (per year), up slightly from 5.5 in 2009 but down from 6.1 in 2008.

In terms of injuries per 100 full time workers, the poultry industry’s rate of 5.9 was below the rate of 6.9 for all animal slaughter and processing and statistically the same as the rate of 5.8 for the entire food manufacturing sector.

Poultry processing’s 2010 rate of 5.9 represents a 74% decrease from 1994 (the oldest data available on the BLS website), when the recorded rate was 22.7, demonstrating the enormous progress the industry has made in improving safety for its workforce.

Source: National Chicken Council