1,001 Facts That Will Scare the S#*t Out of You: The Ultimate Bathroom Reader (32 page)

Charles Montaldo, “It’s Official: ‘Going Postal’ Is Epidemic,”
About.com
,
www.about.com
.

216

FACT :
In 1976, the typical CEO earned
thirty-six times
the salary of his average worker. Today, the average CEO makes 369 times what an average worker makes.
Both of them are unemployed now, and 369 times zero is zero.

Steven Greenhouse, The Big Squeeze: Tough Times for the American Worker (Random House, 2008).

217

FACT :
There were over
600 workplace homicides
in this country in 2007.
I wonder how many of those were CEOs.

Steven Greenhouse, The Big Squeeze: Tough Times for the American Worker (Random House, 2008).

“TED: The Editor’s Desk: Workplace Homicides in 2007,” Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 26, 2008,
www.bls.gov
.

218

FACT :
One study suggests that
Californians are more likely to be murdered at work
than in a motor vehicle accident while commuting to work.
Some Californians probably wouldn’t mind being murdered during their commute.

Barbara Kate Repa, Your Rights in the Workplace, 8th ed. (Nolo, 2007).

219

FACT :
Fatalities at construction sites are most frequently caused by falls, accounting for one–third of construction-related deaths each year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports no fewer than
442 construction workers were killed by accidental falls
on the job in 2007.
As opposed to intentional falls.

“I’m bored. I’m gonna do some falls. Be back in ten.”

“Preventing Fatal Falls in Construction,” Occupational Safety & Health Administrations, U.S. Department of Labor, September 25, 2008,
www.osha.gov
.

220

FACT :
Almost 6,000 Americans—
about seventeen per day
— suffered fatal injuries on the job in 2006.
Some people will do anything to get out of work.

Tyche Hendricks, “Workplace Deaths Rise in California, Nation,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 29, 2008,
www.sfgate.com
.

221

FACT :
Falling from the roof is a specific concern at construction sites. Roof falls were the
most prevalent type of deadly falls in 2007
, and resulted in 686 fatalities from 2003 to 2007.
Because of this, the Department of Labor recommends that construction workers avoid falling accidentally, especially from roofs.

“Preventing Fatal Falls in Construction,” Occupational Safety & Health Administrations, U.S. Department of Labor, September 25, 2008,
www.osha.gov
.

222

FACT :
A 2006 government study named agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting as
the most dangerous occupations in the United States
, with an average of 30 deaths each per 100,000 workers.
After a coworker went on a murderous rampage, Melvin quit his office job and became a farmer—then ran himself over with a combine and died a week later.

Tyche Hendricks, “Workplace Deaths Rise in California, Nation,” San Francisco Chronicle, April 29, 2008,
www.sfgate.com
.