A comparative study of workplace safety records in Michigan and across the nation provides a strong endorsement of the historic benefits of state and federal OSHA groups

But in a business environment where employers are demanding continuous improvement from employees, it's fair for workers to ask state and federal safety regulators, "what have you done for us lately?" Some of the job safety and fatality statistics in Michigan and across the nation contain good news for workers - but they also show a real need for improvement

In April, the AFL-CIO Department of Occupational Safety and Health issued a wide-ranging report on national job safety and fatality rates, in some categories breaking the numbers down by state. Michigan's numbers contained good and bad news - but they were also a reminder that there's always someone worse off than you are.

"For decades workers and their unions have led the struggle for good working conditions and dignity and respect on the job," said AFL-CIO President John Sweeney. "We've won union contracts that won workers a voice on the job. We've fought for and won the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and the Mine Safety and Health Act. We have made the work place safer for workers. But despite these significant improvements, the toll of workplace injuries, illnesses and death remains enormous. We must continue to fight to strengthen safety and health standards and to make the penalties for violating the law tougher."

Following are a sampling of the statistics, which encompassed years up to and including 2000.

• First, the great news: workplace fatalities since federal OSHA was established in 1970 dropped from 18 per thousand workers that year, to 4.3 per thousand in 2000. There were 13,800 U.S. workers killed on the job in 1970, compared to 5,915 in 2000 - and the size of the American workforce nearly doubled during that 30-year period. Conclusion: OSHA has saved thousands of lives.
• Rating from best to worst, Michigan ranked 11th among the states in counting all workplace fatalities in 2000. Rhode Island was No. 1 with the fewest worker fatalities that year, while Alaska had the highest fatality rate.
• Given current staffing levels, it would take 50 years for OSHA/MIOSHA to inspect all of Michigan's job sites. Believe it or not, that's fifth best in the nation. Heavily regulated Nevada was best - it would take "only" 14 years for safety inspectors to look at all jobsites in that state. If you live in Florida, it would take 231 years, which was the worst state, followed by Louisiana, Mississippi and Georgia. With the exception of New Hampshire, the bottom 10 states in this category were all right-to-work states.
• Just over half (2,717) of all the workplace inspections that took place in Michigan in 2000 were performed on construction sites in 2000. The average penalty assessed on employers for serious OSHA violations in Michigan: $540. The national average: $910. Only seven states imposed lower average penalties against violators than Michigan.
• Michigan has some work to do with injury and illness rates. In 2000, the injury and illness rate per 100 full-time workers was 4.0 percent; compared to the 3.0 percent national rate. On a national basis, nearly 20 percent of all construction workers lost time due to illness and injury in 1972. In 2000, that number dropped to 8.3 percent - which was second to manufacturing at 9.0 percent.
• The workplace fatality rate among construction workers dropped significantly after 1970. There were 69 deaths per 100,000 U.S. construction workers in 1970, a figure which dropped to 12.9 in 2000.