>>> From the United Nations' International Labor Organisation (ILO), 24 April 2002:

The ILO estimates that approximately two million workers lose their lives annually due to occupational injuries and illnesses, with accidents causing at least 350,000 deaths a year. For every fatal accident, there are an estimated 1,000 non-fatal injuries, many of which result in lost earnings, permanent disability and poverty. The death toll at work, much of which is attributable to unsafe working practices, is the equivalent of 5,000 workers dying each day, three persons every minute.

This is more than double the figure for deaths from warfare (650,000 deaths per year). According to the ILO's SafeWork programme, work kills more people than alcohol and drugs together and the resulting loss in Gross Domestic Product is 20 times greater than all official development assistance to the developing countries. Hazardous substances kill 340,000 per year, with a single substance, asbestos, accounting for 100,000 of those. Exposure to daily occupational hazards such as dust, chemicals, noise and radiation cause untold suffering and illness, including cancers, heart diseases and strokes.

According to the ILO, at least half of the deaths from accidents could be prevented by safe working practices and all accidents are avoidable and preventable. Agriculture, construction and mining are the three most hazardous occupations in both developing and industrialized countries.

[read the full press release from the ILO]

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