Work-Related Fatalities Up In Minnesota

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- The number of work-related fatalities in Minnesota last year was up 12 percent from the recent five-year average.

The state Department of Labor and Industry says there were 74 work-related fatalities in 2015, up from 62 the previous year and from the average of 66 from 2010 through 2014.

Minnesota's agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting sector had the highest number of worker fatalities, with 23. Construction was second, with nine.

There were 31 transportation-related fatalities, the most for any incident type.

Sixty of the 74 fatally injured workers in Minnesota were men.

The workplace fatality statistics are from the annual Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries conducted by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Nationally, there were 4,836 worker fatalities last year, similar to the 2014 count of 4,821.

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