WC Claims Characteristics CY1999

Department of Consumer & Business Services
Research & Analysis Section

The Workers' Compensation Division received 25,802 accepted disabling claims in 1999, a decrease of 1,247 claims from 1998. Employment increased by 21,500 workers. This resulted in a claims rate of 1.6 claims per 100 workers. This claims rate is a record low in Oregon.

Table 1. Accepted Disabling Claims

Of the 47 work-related fatalities recorded in 1999, 42 of the victims were men, and five were women. The youngest was a 16-year-old farm worker. The oldest was a 72-year-old motorcycle escort.

INJURY/DISEASE FACTS, OREGON, 1999

The transportation and public utilities industry had the highest claims rate (4.1), followed by the mining industry (3.6). The finance, insurance, and real estate industry had the lowest rate (0.5).
Occupational diseases comprised 12.2 percent of the accepted disabling claims.
Of the total 25,802 claims accepted as disabling, 219 were workers younger than 18; 304 were 65 or older.
The average age of the 1999 claimants was 38.

Claims filed by women totaled 8,025 (31.1 percent).

The average weekly wage at time of injury for 1999 claimants was $489.98. The average weekly wage for Oregon workers, excluding federal employees,
was $589.19.
Workers in their first year with an employer filed 9,143 claims, 35.4 percent of the total accepted in 1999.
Ninety percent of the accepted disabling claims came from private industry.
Motor vehicles were the most common secondary source of injury in 1999, contributing in 916 claims.

Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (OR-OSHA)

The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (OR-OSHA) offers a wide range of services to Oregon's employers and workers to improve work-place safety and health. These services include:

Consultations

Education/Conferences

Technical resources and film library

Educational grants

Hazard abatement assistance

For more information, contact:
OR-OSHA
350 Winter St. NE, Rm. 430
Salem, OR 97301-3882
(503) 378-3272 or
(800) 922-2689