Reframing Our View of Workplace “Electrical” Injuries

National fire protection association (NFPA) 70E, electrical safety in the workplace, addresses electrical safety practices for electrical workers. However, the words “electrical safety in the workplace” might also be used to refer to electrical safety for all workers and general safety for electrical workers. Recent 2011-2015 Bureau of labor statistics (BLS) data indicate that, comparatively speaking, electrical work is not an exceptionally dangerous occupation and that electrical injuries are not unique to electrical workers. The BLS injury data reveals: Contact with electricity is a much higher percentage of fatal occupational injuries than nonfatal occupational injuries and the number of nonfatal electric shock and electrical burn injuries rose in 2015. The BLS data suggests that worker safety programs, in general, need to make electrical hazard awareness a priority. The BLS data specific to electricians showed a rising trend in fatalities, but a reduction in nonfatal injuries. Electrical workers are injured not only by electrical hazards, but also by violence, transportation accidents, falling, and overexertion; the percentages of the different injury types are explored to reinforce the importance of comprehensive safety training for electrical workers.