COVID Again Leading Cause of WA Work-Related Deaths

Washington state officials say COVID-19 was responsible for about one quarter of the 106 work-related deaths reported in Washington in 2021.

About a quarter of the 106 work-related deaths reported in Washington in 2021 were caused by COVID-19, state officials said this week.

For the second year in a row, coronavirus is the leading cause of work-related deaths in Washington state, according to data from the State’s Department of Labor and Industry, the Seattle Times reported.
In 2021, 26 people died after contracting the coronavirus in the workplace, up from 24 in 2020.

In 2021:22 deaths due to construction; 16 transport – and storage-related deaths; 14 deaths related to public safety; 11 agriculture-related deaths; And 10 workers fell to their deaths.

The total number of workplace deaths fell from 119 in 2020.

The workers who died were medics, correctional officers, mechanics, orchard workers, and police officers, ranging in age from 19 to 84, according to labor and industrial corporation data.
Even if we thought the worst of the pandemic was over, we find ourselves looking back at another year in which COVID was the leading cause of work-related deaths.