Elon Musk’s SpaceX has reported injury rates that surpass the industry average for the second consecutive year. This could potentially raise concerns for the company’s clients, including NASA.
Recent safety data submitted to U.S. regulators by SpaceX revealed that the company’s injury rates in 2023 were higher than the industry average, Reuters reported. The data, newly disclosed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), also indicates a worsening trend in injury rates at some SpaceX facilities compared to 2022.
At SpaceX’s Brownsville, Texas manufacturing-and-launch facility, the reported injury rate was 5.9 per 100 workers, exceeding the 2022 rate of 4.8 and the industry average of 0.8. This follows a previous Reuters investigation that uncovered over 600 unreported worker injuries at SpaceX, including incidents resulting in crushed limbs, amputations, severe head injuries, and a fatality.
“NASA should be concerned about the quality of the work,” said David Michaels, a former OSHA administrator who is now a professor at George Washington University. High injury rates, he added, can be “an indicator of poor production quality.”
SpaceX did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comment.
This news comes at a time when Musk’s influence in the space industry is under the spotlight. Just a day before this report, Walter Isaacson, a prominent biographer, pointed out Musk’s unique position in U.S. space exploration, stating that Musk is the only person capable of launching U.S. astronauts into orbit, a task that neither NASA nor Boeing can currently accomplish.
However, this revelation about SpaceX’s injury rates raises questions about the company’s operational standards, especially in light of previous safety concerns. In February, SpaceX was fined $3,600 by U.S. worker safety officials following a near amputation incident at its Washington site. This incident was part of a series of safety violations and injuries that had been previously unreported.
Moreover, Musk’s other venture, The Boring Company, has also been under scrutiny for its poor safety record and dangerous working conditions, further raising concerns about Musk’s overall approach to worker safety.
