Worldwide, 3 million people die from work-related causes each year.
Industry & EmploymentInternational
- Omissions
- The ILO's precise estimate is 2.93 million, not exactly 3 million — a difference of roughly 2.4%, well within standard rounding tolerance.
- The data comes from ILO global estimates published in November 2023 at the 23rd World Congress on Safety and Health at Work; no more recent global estimate was available as of the session date (2026-05-18). The underlying data draws on trends from 2000–2019 and does not reflect any potential post-pandemic structural changes in occupational mortality.
- An earlier, narrower WHO/ILO joint estimate (2021) reported 1.9 million work-related deaths for 2016; the ILO's higher 2.93 million figure reflects an expanded methodology that includes a broader range of work-related diseases.
- Sources
- PrimaryInternational Labour Organization (ILO)Nearly 3 million people die of work-related accidents and diseases. The ILO also estimates that 395 million workers worldwide sustained non-fatal work injuries. The new estimates, released at the 23rd World Congress on Safety and Health at Work, include '2.93 million workers die each year as a result of work-related factors.'
- PrimaryInternational Labour Organization (ILO) — Safety and Health at Work2.93 million workers die each year as a result of work-related factors. 395 million workers worldwide sustain a non-fatal work injury each year.