Earlier this year we reported on the jobs with the highest number and rates of fatal accidents from 2002. The Bureau of Labor Statistics released latest national census of fatal occupational injuries from for 2004 in September, as reported in CNN/Money.com. The number of on-the-job fatalities decreased to 5,703, one of the safest on record. The highest rates of fatal injuries--the most per worker employed—continued to occur among loggers, pilots, and fishermen. Highway accidents on the job are still the number one killer, killing 1,374 last year, 21 more than 2003. Nearly half of all fatal work injuries occurred among workers who drive or move material around for a living, according to BLS statistics reported by CNN/Money. Truck drivers, forklift operators, trash collectors, and cabbies are all part of this group. Construction workers had 9 percent more fatalities. Of these, roofers recorded 94 deaths, a sharp increase from the 55 they incurred the year before. Rank / Occupation / Death rate/100,000 / Total deaths 1 Logging workers / 92.4 / 85
2 Aircraft pilots / 92.4 / 109
3 Fishers and fishing workers / 86.4 / 38
4 Structural iron and steel workers / 47.0 / 31
5 Refuse and recyclable material collectors / 43.2 / 35
6 Farmers and ranchers / 37.5 / 307
7 Roofers / 34.9 / 94
8 Electrical power line installers/repairers / 30.0 / 36
9 Driver/sales workers and truck drivers / 27.6 / 905
10 Taxi drivers and chauffeurs / 24.2 / 67