OSHA Fatality Rate Calculator
Calculate Safety Incident Frequency per 100 Full-Time Employees
Calculation Results
Understanding the OSHA Fatality Rate Calculation
In the United States, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) track workplace safety using standardized rates. The fatality rate provides a comparative metric that allows businesses of different sizes to evaluate their safety performance against industry benchmarks.
The Standard OSHA Formula
OSHA incident rates are typically calculated based on a base of 100 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers. This base represents 200,000 hours (100 workers working 40 hours per week for 50 weeks per year).
Step-by-Step Calculation Example
Suppose a construction firm had 1 work-related fatality during the calendar year. Their total workforce (including field staff and office personnel) worked a combined total of 450,000 hours.
- Identify Fatalities: 1
- Identify Total Hours: 450,000
- Multiply Fatalities by Base: 1 × 200,000 = 200,000
- Divide by Total Hours: 200,000 / 450,000 = 0.44
The resulting fatality rate is 0.44 per 100 full-time employees.
Why Total Hours Worked Matters
Using total hours worked rather than simple employee counts is more accurate because it accounts for part-time employees, seasonal fluctuations, and overtime. If your company relies heavily on overtime, your "Total Hours" will be higher, which may lower your incident rate relative to the number of bodies in the building.
BLS vs. OSHA Reporting
While the standard OSHA rate is per 200,000 hours, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) often reports national fatality rates per 100,000 full-time workers, which uses a base of 200,000,000 hours. This is typically used for large-scale national data to avoid very small decimals in industries with low fatality counts.