Texas Reports 564 Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2023, Down Slightly From Prior Year

January 27, 2025

The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation this month released a report on fatal occupational injuries in Texas for the 2023 year, finding that fatal injuries were slightly down compared to the year prior.

There were 564 fatal occupational injuries in Texas in 2023, with the private sector representing 93% of total fatalities. The number of fatalities was 14 fewer than 2022. Texas had an incident rate of fatalities of 4.1 per 100,000 full-time employees in 2023, higher than the national incident rate of 3.5.

Fatalities in the transportation and warehousing industries represented approximately one-fifth of the state’s occupational fatalities with 121 incidents.

Overall, trade, transportation, and utilities industry (public and private sector) had the highest number of fatalities with 183 incidents, followed by construction (126) and natural resources and mining (51).

Driver/sales workers and truck drivers had the highest number of fatalities of any occupation with 144. Construction laborers had the next highest with 48, followed by grounds maintenance workers (31).

Transportation incidents accounted for 246 of the state’s occupational fatalities. Of those, 114 involved a roadway collision with another vehicle.

There were 92 incidents of fatalities caused by slip and falls, with 85 attributed to falls to a lower level.

There were 71 fatalities related to violent acts, with 43 incidents committed by another person and 28 intentional self-harm.

The report is released each year to help employers, safety professionals, and policymakers identify occupational safety and health issues. Information is taken from the latest U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) data. CFOI data doesn’t include COVID-19-related or other illness-related deaths.

The full report can be found here.