Factory work is big here in our part of the country. Despite Illinois and Indiana not being the size of some of the larger states (think California, Texas, Alaska), both rank within the top ten in our country for manufacturing.
In fact, the State of Illinois is the fourth largest state in number of manufacturing companies employing workers in the United States, and the Hoosier State boasts the eighth highest number of manufacturing employers. Read, Top 10 U.S. States for Manufacturing, published by Industry Select on June 10, 2026. Moreover, Indiana beats Illinois in Manufacturing GDP as of 2025, ranking third in the country (surpassed only by California and Texas), with Illinois still ranking an impressive fifth in the nation for Gross Domestic Product within the industry. For more, read Powell, Phil. “Indiana’s outlook for 2026.” Indiana Business Review 100.4 (2025).
These are impressive statistics, of course, especially for those working in our local factories or those who have loved ones employed in factory work here. However, for safety agencies and advocates for worker victims and their loved ones, it is vital that workers are aware of the realities of how dangerous working in the manufacturing industry can be and how real the risk is of a fatal work accident in factories today.
Top Three Causes of Fatal Work Accidents in Manufacturing Industry
There are many different kinds of workplaces within the manufacturing industry, from paper mills to slaughterhouses; pharmaceutical makers; steel mills and fabricators; machinery plants; motor vehicle parts manufacturers; or car makers. Factories vary in size, scope, and purpose.
For instance, Ford Motor Company employs thousands of Illinois factory workers, with its Chicago plant in operation since 1924, while Eli Lilly & Co. is the largest manufacturing employer in Indiana, with over 10,000 employees at its Indianapolis facility. See, “Top 10 Manufacturing Companies in Indiana,” published by Industry Select on April 25, 2026.
Clearly, each factory jobsite may have specific hazards to be addressed by those with possession, custody, or control of aspects of the workplace. Working for a steel fabricator comes with different tasks and different risks than working in a food processing plant. Nevertheless, using fatality statistics compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are some industrial site dangers in all these factories that cause most of the worker deaths in an on-the-job accident.
Time and again, the same hazards result in a situation where a manufacturing plant worker victim loses their life in a tragic and preventable work accident. They are:
1. Caught In-Between or Struck By Accidents
In these horrific incidents, the body of the victim comes into contact with a piece of machinery or equipment, or with a hazardous object in what is termed as either being “caught in-between” or “struck by” accidents. This is the largest single category in manufacturing fatalities. Read, Data and Resources for the Manufacturing Industry compiled by the National Safety Council.
Most of these factory worker deaths are found to correspond to (1) outright failures to provide machine guards or with inadequate machine guarding, or in (2) failures of lockout / tagout (“LOTO”) procedures. Of note, 29 CFR Part 1910.147 regulates lockout/tagout procedures, defining “…the practices and procedures necessary to disable machinery or equipment, thereby preventing the release of hazardous energy while employees perform servicing and maintenance activities. The standard outlines measures for controlling hazardous energies — electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, chemical, thermal, and other energy sources.” Read, OSHA Fact Sheet, “Lockout Tagout”.
- For more on machine guarding accidents, read: Machine Guarding: Serious Industrial Work Accidents Caused by Moving Machine Parts.
- For more on lockout/tagout accidents, read: Lockout and Tagout (LOTO) Injuries on the Job: a Top Ten OSHA Safety Violation.
2. Transportation: Motor Vehicle Accidents
Factories are loud and busy places, where all kinds of specialized heavy machinery and equipment are in use at all times of the day and night. Lots of motorized vehicles move around a manufacturing plant, from all kinds of forklifts and industrial trucks to delivery vans and trucks or utility vehicles (like a stock chaser or tow tractor). They are all covered by federal regulations as well as industrial safety standards. See, for instance, 29 CFR §1910.178 for powered industrial trucks.
There are also lots of large commercial trucks and other industrial vehicles in operation at these worksites, used for things like handling heavy loads and moving factory materials around the place. For instance, a truck built to transport raw materials like scrap steel as well as finished products is commonly found at an Indiana mini-mill.
Sadly, factory workers are at a great risk of a fatal motor vehicle accident involving one of these utility vehicles, forklifts, or trucks. Transportation incidents are another repeatedly recorded type of death involving a manufacturing work accident.
- For more on forklift and industrial truck accidents, read: Forklift Accidents: Serious and Deadly Industrial Truck Injuries on the Job.
3. Falls and Exposures
Manufacturing jobsites are notoriously dangerous environments, where all sorts of harmful things are within an arm’s length with the workers on the job. Factories can demand tasks be performed from a scaffold or ladder or at a platform height that can result in a fatal fall. There are also toxins, deadly industrial chemicals, and hazardous materials that may pervade the site. Steel mills come with molten metal; chemicals like benzene, formaldehyde, and sulfuric acid are commonplace in many manufacturing plants. Inhalation can cause death, as can industrial chemical burns or thermal incidents. See, “What are Toxic Industrial Chemicals?,” published by OSHA on September 16, 2022.
- For more on fatal falls on the job, read: OSHA Fall Safety Regulations For Industrial Workers: Focus of May’s National Safety Stand Down.
- For more on industrial exposure injuries, read: Dangerous Chemicals and Work Injuries: 2nd Highest Safety Violation in 2022 Was Hazard Communication.
Wrongful Death In a Manufacturing Work Accident
Thousands died each year in industrial work accidents, and many of these workers lose their lives in preventable events involving known dangers like falls; chemical exposures; vehicular accidents; or contact injuries. See, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries Summary, 2024. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 19 Feb. 2026.
Federal regulatory protections exist for the dangers facing our manufacturing workers today here in Illinois and Indiana. Compliance with 29 CFR §1910.212 (machine guards) and 29 CFR §1910.147 (LOTO) should keep factory workers safe from contact injuries, for instance.
Nevertheless, all too often there is disregard or disrespect of basic safety needs during a busy manufacturing enterprise. This may be an exception to a standardized safety regimen or it could be the general consensus in a lax environment where profits are the focus over protection of those on the job. Either way, a deadly manufacturing work accident can happen in seconds with heartbreaking results.
Should investigations into the fatal work accident reveal that federal safety regulations were disregarded, regardless of intent, then more than one civil wrongful death claim may be available (alongside survivor’s benefits) against those companies and individuals found to have breached a legal duty of care that contributed to causation. Regulatory violations are not the same as state causes of action (e.g., negligence, product liability, premises liability, defective products, etc.) but they do help support the victim’s burden of proving up fault. See, Industrial Standards, OSHA Regulations, and Work Accident Injury Claims.
Also read:
- Factory Worker Accident: Amputation or Loss of Limb Injuries
- Factory Workers: Five Things To Do After Machinery Accident on the Job
- Wrongful Death Claims in Illinois and Indiana: Different Laws Providing Justice after a Fatal Injury
- Chicago Factory Worker Accidents: List of Civil Claim Damages Aside From Workers’ Compensation Benefits
- Factory Accidents in Indiana: Liability for Work Injuries.
The manufacturing industries of Illinois and Indiana are some of our biggest employers. And those working in these factory surroundings are wise to be alert to the hazards surrounding them and any lapses in duties of care they are legally owed by those profiting from their work efforts. Sadly, most of these worker deaths will be confirmed to be caused in preventable accidents. Please be careful out there!
