(ReclaimingAmerica.net) – Logging has been revealed to be the deadliest profession in America even as it continues brave souls with its promise of high wages despite harsh conditions and perilous demands.
Workers face extreme hazards daily, from operating hefty machinery amongst towering trees to risking life and limb on challenging terrain.
The logging industry continues to be a significant economic driver despite its risks.
Enormous trees, steep terrain, and severe weather present unique challenges for loggers, who accept these dangers in exchange for economic stability and income surpassing local private-sector jobs.
Notably, logging offers wages 17% higher than average local wages in Oregon.
However, the dangers posed by logging are undeniable.
Logging workers have the highest fatal injury rate among U.S. jobs, ranging from 82.2 to 100 deaths per 100,000 workers, according to Innovative Human Capital.
In stark comparison, the safest job category is in computer and mathematical occupations, with a fatality rate of a mere 0.24 per 100,000 workers.
Workplace safety is crucial, with employers bearing the responsibility to prevent unnecessary accidents and deaths.
“When looking at the potential risk posed by any given occupation, it often isn’t enough to just look at the total number of fatalities, as this is likely to be overrepresented in jobs that have a large population of workers to begin with,” commented Michael Agruss, Managing Partner at Agruss Law Firm.
“By looking at rates of fatal injuries, we were able to obtain a clearer understanding of which jobs pose the greatest risk, as a proportion of the number of workers and hours worked for each occupation,” he added.
Despite the decline in the number of lumber mills and employment in Oregon dropping from 11,000 in 1990 to just 4,400 in 2024, logging remains a vital source of income.
Various factors such as international competition and conservational legal battles have contributed to this decline.
Economic incentives keep many embedded in this dangerous labor.
For those enduring the treacherous duties of a logger, the satisfaction of providing for their families often outweighs the severe risk of injury or death.
However, the personal and financial struggles faced by families of deceased loggers serve as a grim reminder of the occupation’s hazards.
Logging operations in the Pacific Northwest and South are continually scrutinized by regulatory bodies such as Oregon OSHA, who work to improve safety conditions by identifying violations and imposing penalties on unsafe practices.
A grim illustration of the logging industry’s perils is the 2021 incident where Eduardo Mendoza Arias, an Oregon logger, tragically lost his life on the job.
His story brings to light the sheer unpredictability and danger inherent in logging, Dnyuz writes in a report.
In a world often ruled by desk jobs and technology-driven professions, those who choose logging offer an enduring testament to resilience and courage, making significant contributions to the rural economies they hail from despite the life’s work being a constant battle against nature’s formidable forces.
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