PORTLAND, Maine - Maine's older residents are dying on the job at a higher rate than workers overall, and for most of the last decade, at a higher rate than their peers nationwide.
An Associated Press analysis of federal statistics found that while the rate of workplace fatalities has decreased nationally, older people are dying on the job at a higher rate than workers overall.
The workplace death rate for older people in Maine was above the national rate for seven of the 10 years between 2006 and 2015, though it has been dropping in recent years.
The number of older people in the workplace is increasing as baby boomers reject the traditional retirement age of 65. In 2015, workers age 55 and over made up 27 percent of Maine's workforce.