FACTS

1. Examples of safety hazards that can harm janitorial workers include:

• Heavy or awkward lifting, overexertion, repetitive motions, and other physical stressors
• Hazardous cleaning chemicals
• Bloodborne pathogens due to contact with used needles, lancets, and other contaminated waste
• Workplace violence (e.g., assaults)
• Slip and Falls
• Repetitive Motion Injury
• Equipment Malfunction

STATS

• According to statistics published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, janitors and cleaners had the third highest number of nonfatal injuries and illnesses. But while there were almost 43,000 nonfatal injuries, 42,740, only about 40 people in the janitorial industry were injured in a way that was fatal.
• A total of 390 janitors participated in a study (response rate = 33%); among them, 34% reported experiencing at least one injury. The most common injury reported was pain (66%), and 16% of injury cases resulted in hospital admittance. The most common body parts injured involved primarily the back and lower extremities. There was a significant increase in risk based on age, ethnicity, shift start time and depression.
• Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners” the incidence rate for injuries and illnesses involving days away from work was 157.4 per 10,000 full-time workers in 2019, nearly twice the rate of 86.9 per 10,000 workers for “all occupations.
• Workplace injuries for janitors come at sizeable costs to the worker and to society, with an estimated 4.1 billion dollars in medical and productivity costs, annually in the United States, the 2nd highest cost total of the low-wage occupations studied.