The recession and slowdown in construction activity in New York City had a silver lining last year: fewer workplace deaths.
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that there were 63 workplace fatalities in the city in 2009.
That’s 27 fewer than a year earlier, and the lowest total since the bureau began tracking fatalities comprehensively in 1992.
Fewer falls at construction sites accounted for much of the decline.
There were 5 fatal falls on job sites last year, compared to 25 in 2008.
Homicide was the leading cause of workplace deaths, with 16 killings. Suicides followed, with 12.
On-the-job deaths have been dropping steadily in the city since the early 1990s, when the city had more than 100 workplace slayings several years in a row.
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