A new report from the Department of Labor shows the shocking statistic that one in every six American workers killed on the job are truck drivers.

The report was released on August 17th and examines the different ways that life as a truck driver can be dangerous, saying “driving a truck is risky in ways you might not expect.”





According to the report, 761 truckers were killed on the job in 2014, which marks the fifth year in a row that the number of trucker fatalities has increased. It also notes that 78% of the deaths were caused by “transportation incidents.”

From the report, you might take away that being a truck driver is incredibly dangerous and that it’s getting more so all the time. While being a trucker can certainly be dangerous, the report is neglecting to mention some very important information. Most importantly, that there are a LOT of truckers.

Another important bit of information is that the number of deaths has increased in the past five years at a slower rate than the amount of freight being shipped has increased – meaning that the increase in deaths isn’t necessarily because the roads are getting less safe, and is likely in large part because there are more truckers spending more time on the road.

Indeed, as you can see in an excellent analysis by Kevin Jones over at Fleetowner, fatality rates in crashes have been falling consistently.

Additionally, while 761 truckers dying on the job in just one year is far too many, that’s 761 out of millions. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ calculations, a trucker has a .000247% chance of having a fatal work injury every year.

But of course, that’s not nothing. And not all devastating work injuries are fatal. The Department of Labor report also notes that truckers are much more likely than the average American worker to get injured on the job, and if they do their injuries prevent them from returning to work for twice as long as average.

So to all the truckers out there: Stay safe, keep your head on a swivel, and the shiny side up.

Source: DOL, gobytrucknews, fleetowner