Reader Feedback: Comparing Airline Safety to U.S. Workplaces is "Apples to Oranges"

June 30, 2005
A reader speaks out about an Occupationalhazards.com article that referenced a session at the American Society of Safety Engineers Professional Conference.

Dear Editor;

I have been a long-time subscriber and never felt the need to send a critique before now. However, the article ASSE: Management-Based Safety Can Take Your Program to New Heights (www.occupationalhazards.com/articles/13615) deserves comment, in that, although the concepts recommended by Gualardo are sound, the premise for his conclusion that the airlines are safer than U.S. workplaces is based on a false analogy.

Gualardo compares the product safety record of airlines with the occupational safety record of industry, which is an "apples to oranges" comparison. He asserts that in 2002, the airlines flew millions of miles for millions of hours without a fatality and that "... by contrast...U.S. workplaces in 2002 experienced 4.7 million OSHA recordable injury and illness cases...," yielding a case rate of 5.3. Mr. Gualardo seems to argue not only that product safety can be compared to workplace safety, but that product fatalities are somehow comparable to occupational injuries.

Although I did not locate the BLS 2002 data, I am confident the rates for air transportation and general industry did not change significantly from 2002 to 2003. The BLS statistics for 2003 (the latest available records) reveals that 12 occupational fatalities occurred in the air transportation, scheduled flight sector. In fact, according to the BLS, the occupational injury/illness rate for air transportation (SIC 481100) was 11.7 in 2003 as compared to 5.0 for all industry in 2003. According to that data, airline occupational safety is more than twice as bad as U.S. industry workplace safety as a whole!

I believe Gualdrdo's claim that the airline industry (workplace) is safer than that of the rest of industry is unsupported by the data. One cannot claim superior safety performance based on a comparison of product safety and workplace safety. Product safety is very different than occupational safety.

I admire the safety record of airline passenger safety and have no desire to minimize that industry's accomplishments. However, it is a disservice to the EHS profession to misrepresent performance as the subject article did.

Very Sincerely,

Robert Eaton

EHS Manager

Eaton Automotive

Athens, Georgia

(If you would like to comment on an article posted on Occupationalhazards.com, please send your comments to Executive Editor Stephen Minter at [email protected].)

Sponsored Recommendations

3 Essential Elements for a Strong Safety Culture

March 13, 2024
Organizations globally have increased their attention on safety culture: trying to figure out what it really is and the aspects that are necessary to develop and sustain it. And...

Making the Case for Occupational Health Software

March 13, 2024
Deciding to invest in Occupational Health (OH) software can be a challenging leap for many organizations. This article will equip businesses with insightful strategies for effectively...

Fighting the Flu: Solutions for the Workplace

March 13, 2024
Seasonal flu continues to wreak considerable havoc both on individual wellness, as well as on our business continuity and productivity. Explore these solutions for protecting ...

Preventing SIFs with Digitization: Reduce Serious Injuries and Fatalities with Technology

March 13, 2024
This eBook discusses the origins of SIF prevention, outlines principles, models and tools available to EHS leaders to better detect and address SIF potential in their business...

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of EHS Today, create an account today!