FACTS

The Most Common Types of Injuries in Landscaping and Industry 

• Contact with machinery or equipment – Sharp blades and moving gears can cause serious injury.
• Slips and falls – Whether working from heights or tripping at ground level, a single fall can change major injury.
• Weather exposure – Winter isn’t the only dangerous season. Heat stroke and dehydration are common summer ailments.
• Hazardous materials – Many landscapers work closely with pesticides, yard care products and other toxic chemicals.
• Electrical currents – High voltage machinery and frequent digging near electrical wires put landscapers at risk of electrocution.

STATS

• Landscaping is one of the highest hazard industries in the service sector. The fatality rate per 100,000 workers in the landscaping industry is 25.1 compared to 3.8 for all industries. When viewed by occupation, fatality rates per 100,000 workers are as follows:  tree trimmer/pruners (179.9), pesticide handlers (15.4), landscaping/grounds keeping workers (10.1), and all occupations (3.8). Non-fatal injuries are also disproportionately high, with injuries occurring most commonly from contact with objects/equipment, falls from elevation, and transportation.
• An average of 197 landscape services workers died from the-job injuries each year. The fatality rate for the landscape services industry, about 25 deaths per 100,000 workers, is similar to that for more recognized high-risk industries such as agriculture and mining. Although landscape services workers make up 0.8% of the U.S. workforce, they experienced 3.5% of the total occupational fatalities.
• BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) identified 789 deaths due to traumatic injuries among landscape services workers and their first-line supervisors. In each of these years, 25 to 30% of these workers who died were identified as self-employed. About 56% of the fatalities occurred among white workers, 29% among Hispanic and Latino workers and 11% among Black or African American workers. Nearly 80% of the landscape services worker fatalities occurred in the landscape services industry.
• The most common event resulting in landscape services worker fatalities was transportation incidents. About 33% of all landscape worker fatalities were due to transportation incidents in comparison with 43% for all U.S. industry.
• Landscape services workers were more likely to die due to falls to lower level, struck by falling objects, and electrocutions (22%, 17%, and 9.8%, respectively) than the overall U.S. workforce (12%, 6.3%, and 4.4% respectively). Landscape services workers were engaged in a range of activities at the time of the occupational fatalities.