AGEING AND FATAL WORK-RELATED INJURIES: A CASE STUDY FROM VIETNAM

Abstract

In the United States, the estimated fatal work-related injury rate was 3.2 per 100,000 population in 2012 and the total registered number of deaths was 4,383. The cause of death comprise six main groups: transportation accidents (41%), violence and other injuries by persons or animals (17%), contact with objects and equipment (16%), falls, slips, or trips (15%), exposure to harmful substances or environments (7%) and fires and explosions (3%) (US Department of Labor, 2013b). The highest rate of fatal work-related injury were among the occupations of (1) construction, (2) transportation, (3) agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting (US Department of Labor, 2013b). Concerningly, these three over-represented occupational groupings comprise 60% (or 29.4 of 49 million people ages 15 and older) of Vietnam’s labor force. (GSO, 2010). Consequently, fatal work-related injuries are a major concern in Vietnam.