WASHINGTON – The US Dept. of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) recently released the latest data on meat and poultry packers and processors for 2017.

The results showed the incidence rate for non-fatal occupational injuries in the industry reached an all-time low.

According to the statistics, there were 4.8 cases of occupational injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in the meat and poultry sector. This tops the old mark of 5.3 cases of occupational injuries per 100 workers recorded in 2016.

“Worker safety progress is one of our industry’s greatest success stories, as evidenced by the more than 80 percent decline in injury and illness rates in the past 20 years,” said North American Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts. “This significant progress demonstrates the industry’s steadfast commitment to provide a safe, healthy work environment to the more than 500,000 employees who produce the world’s safest, most nutritious and affordable meat and poultry supply.”   

Numbers from the BLS show that the non-fatal occupational injuries and illnesses by the meat and poultry industry has been cut in half during the past 12 years.

Serious injuries categorized under the “Days Away, Restricted, or Job Transfer (DART)” rate, totaled 3.6 cases per 100 workers, and matched the lowest rate ever recorded for the industry. The DART incidence rate in 2016 was 4.4 cases per 100 full-time workers.