Estimating the population prevalence of traditional and novel occupational exposures in Federal Region X

Objective Federal Region X is an administrative region in the northwestern United States comprised of the states of Alaska (AK), Idaho (ID), Oregon (OR), and Washington (WA). Quantifying the number of workers in this region exposed to harmful circumstances in the workplace, and projected changes over time will help to inform priorities for occupational health training, risk reduction, and research. Methods State data for WA, ID, OR, and AK were used to estimate number of workers by occupation, in 2014 and 2024. These data were merged with a Canadian job-exposure matrix (CANJEM) which characterizes chemical exposures, and O*NET, which ranks occupations with particular physical, ergonomic, and psychosocial exposures. Results Of the exposures considered, psychosocial and ergonomic exposures were the most prevalent among the regional workforce, though traditional chemical exposures are still common and increasing. Conclusions Exposure surveillance will inform prioritization of risk reduction strategies, ultimately leading to a decrease in occupational injury and illness. Findings from this analysis will help to prioritize occupational health training and research in the region.