ARKANSAS WORK-RELATED INJURIES AND ILLNESSES FOR 2021

Little Rock – The Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing has released the 2021 non-fatal injury and illness data. These estimates are from the annual Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII).
A total of 26,000 work-related injuries and illnesses were estimated to have occurred in Arkansas for private and public sectors combined in 2021, down from 30,200 in 2020. The overall incidence rate was 2.5 in 2021. The 2020 incidence rate was 2.9. Incidence rates represent the number of injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers.
Private Sector
Private industry employers in Arkansas reported 21,100 non-fatal injuries and illnesses in 2021, down from 25,100 in 2020. The incidence rate was 2.4 injury and illness cases per 100 FTE workers in 2021, compared to 2.8 in 2020. The national incidence rate was 2.7 in both 2021 and 2020.
Private industry employers reported 15,500 non-fatal injuries in 2021, compared to 15,200 in 2020. The incidence rate was 1.7 injury cases per 100 FTE workers, the same rate as 2020.
There were 5,600 illness cases reported from private industry employers in 2021, down from 9,900 in 2020. The incidence rate of illness cases decreased from 1.1 cases per 100 FTE workers in 2020 to 0.6 cases in 2021. The decline was driven by the number of respiratory illness cases, which dropped from 9,100 cases in 2020 to 5,100 cases in 2021.
There were 9,900 non-fatal injuries and illnesses that caused a private industry worker to miss at least one day of work in 2021, compared to 13,000 cases in 2020. There were 3,300 cases with job transfer or restriction in 2021, compared to 3,600 in 2020. There were 7,900 other recordable cases in 2021, compared to 8,400 in 2020. Other recordable cases are work-related injuries or illnesses that required more than first aid but did not require day(s) away from work, job transfer or restriction.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic Impact in SOII Results

Occupational injuries and illnesses collected in the 2021 SOII include cases of COVID-19 when a worker was infected as a result of performing their work-related duties and met other recordkeeping criteria. COVID-19 is considered a respiratory illness under criteria established by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Case and Demographic Data in the SOII

Estimates involving days away from work (DAFW) by detailed case characteristics and worker demographics for 2021 are not published in this release. In the Fall of 2023, SOII will begin biennial publication for DAFW and days of job transfer or restriction (DJTR) for the period 2021-2022. Estimates for detailed industry by case type are unchanged.

Public Sector

Public sector employers (State and Local Government) in Arkansas reported 4,900 non-fatal injuries and illnesses in 2021, compared to 5,100 in 2020. The incidence rate was 3.3 injury and illness cases per 100 FTE workers in 2021, compared to 3.4 in 2020.
State Government – State government employers in Arkansas reported 1,100 non-fatal injury and illness cases in 2021, compared to 1,400 in 2020. The incidence rate for state government was 1.8 cases per 100 FTE workers in 2021, compared to 2.4 in 2020.
State government employers reported 1,100 non-fatal injuries in 2021, compared to 1,000 in 2020. The incidence rate was 1.7 injury cases per 100 FTE workers, compared to 1.6 in 2020.
There were 400 non-fatal injury and illness cases that caused a state government employee to miss at least one day of work in 2021, compared to 800 cases in 2020. There were 100 cases with job transfer or restriction in 2021, same as 2020. There were 600 other recordable cases in 2021, compared to 500 in 2020.
Local Government (City & County) – Local government employers in Arkansas reported 3,800 non-fatal injury and illness cases in 2021, compared to 3,700 in 2020. The incidence rate for local government was 4.3 cases per 100 FTE workers in 2021, compared to 4.1 in 2020.
Local government employers reported 3,100 non-fatal injuries in 2021, compared to 3,400 in 2020. The incidence rate was 3.5 injury cases per 100 FTE workers, compared to 3.6 in 2020.
There were 700 illness cases reported from local government employers in 2021, up from 400 in 2020. The incidence rate of illness cases increased from 0.4 cases per 100 FTE workers in 2020 to 0.7 cases in 2021.
There were 1,000 non-fatal injury and illness cases that caused a local government employee to miss at least one day of work in 2021, same as 2020. There were 500 cases with job transfer or restriction in 2021, compared to 200 in 2020. There were 2,300 other recordable cases in 2021, compared to 2,500 in 2020.

Note: Because of rounding, components may not add to totals.

Background

The Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII) was administered by the Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing, Division of Labor, OSH/CFOI Section, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2017 version of the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS 2017) was used to group company data by industry. Arkansas employers are randomly selected for the survey each year.
For additional information, please go to www.bls.gov/iif or www.labor.arkansas.gov.
Fatal occupational injuries for calendar year 2021 were not included in this study. A separate publication will be issued in December 2022.