Workplace suicides in the US surges 28% in 2009

Workplace suicides in the US rose dramatically by 28% this year, according to the US Labor Department.

Circumstances have certainly not improved in the working environment, as anxious workers watched colleagues depart in a rash of layoffs and were left alone to manage their survivor's guilt.

At the same time, the agency's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said the total number of workers who died on the job from any cause fell 12%.

The 5,071 workplace fatalities recorded in 2008 was the lowest number since the agency began tracking the data in 1992. That number includes 251 suicides, the highest number since official reporting began.

Labor officials did not seek to explain the sudden rise in workplace suicides. A BLS spokesman said the agency plans to research it more extensively, and will anounce their findings at a later date.

The agency said that it is very likely that current economic factors could be responsible for the overall decline in fatalities. Workers on average worked 1% fewer hours last year and the construction industry, which usually accounts for a major share of serious accidents or accidental workplace deaths, posted even larger than normal declines in employment and hours worked.

Gary Chaison, a professor of industrial relations at Clark University, said the numbers show that the struggling economy is taking a direct toll and negative impact on worker morale.

"Those who are still working at companies where there have been substantial layoffs, are trying to cope with survivor's guilt, and the anxiety that they may be next." Chaison said. "I also think there's tremendous anxiety for the future, in the American workplace. It's not just being anxious, its gone beyond that it is now a true depression."

Chaison added a note of caution, saying that the numbers may be 'temporary extremes' that will drift back toward normal, historical levels once employment rises and economic conditions improve.

Labor Secretary Hilda Solis called the decline in workplace fatalities a "change in the right direction," but said it does not lessen the need for stronger safety enforcement to prevent accidental injuries.

"Today's report prompts us to step up our vigilance, particularly as the economy regains momentum," Solis said.

Here are some details on other findings:
• Fatal work injuries in the construction sector plummeted 20%.
• Workplace homicides dropped 18%.
• Fatal workplace falls declined 20% in 2008, after rising to a historic high in 2007.
• The number of fatal work injuries declined for all age categories except among the 'risk prone' 16 and 17-year-old workers.