Where are workers safest, and where do they experience the highest rates of injury and illness?

Payroll and HR firm Paychex analyzed government data to find the safest and most dangerous workplaces, as well as common causes of workplace injuries and the median time required to recover from them. That can be important no matter which industry is involved, since in 2014, American workers as a group spent 1,157,410 days recovering from workplace injuries and illnesses. Knowing the trouble spots could lead to solutions that make them safer.

While it's readily apparent that some workplaces pose obvious dangers — such as mining, for instance, in which injured workers are likely to spend a median of 31 days recuperating after a workplace injury — others might not be so obvious. And some industries do present a safer environment, allowing workers to recover more quickly. Some of Paychex's findings were surprising, such as the fact that five government industries were at the top of the list for the highest rate of workplace injuries and illnesses.