Employee Safety in U.S. Theme Parks: The Safest and Most Dangerous Places to Work in 2023

 

Employee Safety in U.S. Theme Parks: The Safest and Most Dangerous Places to Work in 2023

A study of U.S. theme parks reveals those with high work-related incidents, including industry giants Dollywood and WonderWorks Orlando 

 

Key Findings:

• New study uses OSHA data to reveal the US’s most and least safe theme parks for employees

• Maui Zipline Company and Skyline Eco-Adventures are among the safest parks with a 0% incident rate in 2023

• WonderWorks Orlando has one of the highest incident rates, with a staggering 16.8 incident rate per 100 employees

• The average incident rate across most U.S. parks remains below 5%, but several parks need serious safety improvements

Millions of visitors enjoy the excitement of theme parks each year, but behind the scenes are the employees who keep the parks running.  Theme parks are unique environments with a variety of risks, from mechanical rides to water features to animal exhibits, all requiring constant attention, maintenance and upkeep to ensure the safety of both guests and staff.

Personal injury experts at Injured in Florida (https://www.injuredinflorida.com/) analyzed Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) data to rank America’s theme parks based on employee safety. 

The study examined reported incidents across 173 theme parks in the United States, looking at data from 2018 to 2023.

The main metric of this study is the rate of incidents, which includes injuries and illnesses, per 100 full-time employees. 

The incident rate represents the number of incidents per 100 full-time employees in a year. For example, if a park has an incident rate of 5, it means that 5 out of every 100 employees are likely to experience an incident over the course of the year. The lower the incident, the safer the park is considered to be for employees. 

The incident rate for theme parks encompasses a range of workplace issues, including injuries, skin disorders, respiratory conditions, poisonings, hearing loss, and other illnesses as well as employee fatalities. 

Top Performers in Employee Safety

The data revealed that 37 theme parks, including Maui Zipline Company and Skyline Eco-Adventures, maintained a perfect safety record in 2023, with incident rates of 0.00 per 100 employees. Smaller parks like Malibu Jacks across Kentucky also reported no safety issues, making them some of the safest places to work in the industry.

Table 1: U.S. theme parks with an incident rate of zero

Theme Park Name	State	Annual employees (avg. 2023)	Incident Rate (2023)
12041 MAUI ZIPLINE COMPANY LLC	HI	18	0
12311 SKYLINE ECO-ADVENTURES, LLC	HI	51	0
APX Operating Company	FL	17	0
Attraction Support Services	FL	12	0
Branson Mountain Adventure LLC	MO	10	0
CARS	NC	2	0
Celebration Station Baton Rouge	LA	30	0
Celebration Station Mesquite	TX	50	0
Celebration Station Oklahoma City	OK	30	0
Enchanted Forest Water Safari	NY	108	0
Family Adventures Brooklyn, LLC	NY	115	0
FlyOver Chicago	IL	3	0
FlyOver Las Vegas, LLC	NV	79	0
Headway Enterprises Inc.	FL	23	0
Kennywood-Stratwood	PA	30	0
Little Amerricka Amusement Park LLC	WI	30	0
MagicParks Incorporated	IL	54	0
Malibu Jacks Ashland	KY	140	0
Malibu Jacks Lafayette	KY	75	0
Malibu Jacks Lexington	KY	125	0
Malibu Jacks Louisville	KY	100	0
MW Dallas, LLC	TX	124	0
Outdoor Venture Group Discovery, LLC	CT	25	0
Outdoor Venture Group Tennessee. LLC	TN	11	0
Palace Entertainment Corporate Office (“Park Support Center”)	PA	68	0
Ridgmar Urban Air LLC	CT	92	0
Santa Maria	CA	30	0
Scene 75 Chicagoland	IL	110	0
Skull canyon	CA	25	0
The Adventure Park at Virginia Aquarium	VA	35	0
Tower of Americas	TX	14	0
Upton Hill Regional Park	VA	47	0
Urban Air Adventure Park	IL	52	0
Urban Air Cranberry Township	PA	65	0
Urban Air Port Richey	FL	30	0
Village of Hinsdale – PARKS and REC, KLM and POOL	IL	25	0
WonderWorks Syracuse	NY	28	0

 

Worst Performers in Employee Safety

 

Topping the list of least safe theme parks is DTZIP LLC, whose incident rate of 19.35 per 100 employees means nearly one-fifth of their workforce experienced an incident in 2023.

 

WonderWorks Orlando follows closely behind with an incident rate of 16.83 per 100 employees, which translates to approximately one out of every six workers facing an incident last year.

 

The Oaks Park Association was third spot on the list, with a rate of 13.70 incidents per 100 employees, or about one in seven workers encountering an issue in 2023.

 

Fourth in the ranking is York’s Wild Kingdom Inc, with an incident rate of 12.82 per 100 employees. This means roughly one in eight workers experienced an incident last year.

 

The Track comes in fifth. Its incident rate of 12.00 per 100 employees indicates that one in every eight staff members faced an incident in 2023.

 

Rounding out the top 10 least safe theme parks are Fremont Street Experience, LLC in Nevada, Modesto in California, Royal Gorge Company of Colorado, Dollywood Company – HeartSong Resort in Tennessee, and Colorvision International in Florida. 

 

These parks have incident rates ranging from 11.68 to 8.77 per 100 employees. Notably, Modesto had the fewest total incidents at 5, but due to its smaller workforce of 48 employees, its incident rate remains relatively high. 

 

In contrast, Colorvision International, while having the most total incidents (27) among these five, has the lowest incident rate due to its larger employee base of 308. This underscores the importance of considering both total incidents and workforce size when assessing theme park safety.

Table 2: 10 least safe U.S. theme parks by incident rate per 100 employees

 

RANK	Theme Park Name	State	Annual employees (avg. 2023)	Total incidents (2023)	Incident Rate out of 100 employees (2023)
1	DTZIP LLC	NV	124	24	19.35
2	WonderWorks Orlando	FL	101	17	16.83
3	The Oaks Park Association	OR	73	10	13.70
4	York’s Wild Kingdom Inc	ME	39	5	12.82
5	The Track	FL	100	12	12.00
6	Fremont Street Experience, LLC	NV	137	16	11.68
7	Modesto	CA	48	5	10.42
8	Royal Gorge Company of Colorado	CO	70	7	10.00
9	Dollywood Company – HeartSong Resort	TN	71	7	9.86
10	Colorvision International	FL	308	27	8.77

 

Industry giants

Dollywood Company runs three Tennessee resorts:

• HeartSong Resort: 71 employees, 9.86 incidents per 100 workers
• DreamMore Resort: 282 employees, 6.38 incidents per 100
• Dollywood: 2,088 employees, 4.30 incidents per 100

Disney’s Disneyland Resort in California:

• is the largest theme park, with 38,502 employees and 7.66 incidents per 100 workers.

Universal Studios operates two major parks:

• Hollywood: 8,316 employees, 6.47 incidents per 100
• Orlando: 16,715 employees, 5.11 incidents per 100

LEGOLAND has three locations:

• California: 1,300 employees, 7.31 incidents per 100
• New York: 448 employees, 4.02 incidents per 100
• Florida: 1,244 employees, 2.97 incidents per 100

Other notable parks:

• Cedar Point (Ohio): 4,765 employees, 3.78 incidents per 100
• Six Flags Darien (New York): 622 employees, 3.91 incidents per 100
• Six Flags St. Louis: 394 employees, 1.45 incidents per 100 (lowest rate)

 

Table 3: Notable Theme Parks by incident rate per 100 employees

Theme Park Name	State	Annual employees (avg. 2023)	Total incidents	Incident Rate (per 100 Annual Employees)
Dollywood Company – HeartSong Resort	TN	71	7	9.86
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts U.S. Inc., dba Disneyland Resort	CA	38502	2948	7.66
Legoland California Resort	CA	1300	95	7.31
Universal Studios Hollywood	CA	8316	538	6.47
Dollywood Company – DreamMore Resort	TN	282	18	6.38
Universal Orlando Resort	FL	16715	854	5.11
Dollywood Company – Dollywood	TN	2068	89	4.30
LEGOLAND New York Resort	NY	448	18	4.02
Six Flags Darien, LLC	NY	622	15	3.91
Cedar Point	OH	4765	180	3.78
LEGOLAND Florida Resort	FL	1244	37	2.97
Six Flags St. Louis, LLC	MO	384	9	1.45

 

Trends Over Time

• Overall safety trends vary: While some parks show improvement over time, others have experienced increases in incident rates. For example, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts saw its incident rate increase from 6.5 per 100 employees in 2018 to 7.7 in 2023.
• COVID-19 impact: COVID-19, perhaps unsurprisingly, greatly reduced the number of incidents. For example, Universal Studios Hollywood saw a significant drop in both employees and incidents in 2021. Employee numbers fell from 7,980 in 2018 to 6,349 in 2021, with incidents decreasing from 224 to 180 in the same period.
• Outliers and anomalies: Some parks exhibit notable spikes in incident rates. For example, Legoland California Resort saw its incident rate per 100 employees jump from 8.87 in 2021 to 14.00 in 2022, before improving to 7.31 in 2023. “Such significant fluctuations could be due to specific events, changes in reporting methods, operational adjustments, or other factors that would require further investigation to fully understand,” says Injured in Florida.

A spokesperson for Injured In Florida commented:

 

“Theme parks are a thrilling destination for millions of visitors, but what often goes unnoticed is the risk faced by the workers behind the scenes. 

“Our analysis of OSHA data sheds light on which parks are on top of employee safety and which may need improvements. Parks like Maui Zipline and Skyline Eco-Adventures are shining examples, maintaining a perfect safety record with zero incidents in 2023. 

“On the flip side, parks such as WonderWorks Orlando and DTZIP LLC are raising alarms with incident rates as high as 16.8 and 19.35 per 100 employees, respectively. These figures indicate that nearly one in six workers at some of the most popular attractions is experiencing an issue—something that shouldn’t be ignored. 

“We hope this data encourages theme park operators to adopt better safety measures. Steps parks could take include increasing staff training, particularly in handling equipment, and conducting more frequent safety audits. They could also implement clear reporting mechanisms and invest in more ergonomic tools and equipment designed to reduce physical strain and prevent injuries. These steps could help to improve both fun for guests and safety for employees.”

 

Disclaimer: This study analyzes OSHA-reported workplace incidents for theme park employees. It does not assess overall visitor safety. The full data set provides more details on factors influencing incident rates. For current safety information, consult official park and regulatory sources. This analysis is for educational purposes only.

[ENDS]

Link

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About Injured In Florida 

Injured in Florida is a personal injury law firm based in Florida, dedicated to helping individuals recover compensation for injuries from accidents, including car, truck, and motorcycle accidents, as well as slip and falls, dog bites, work accidents, and wrongful deaths. Founded in 2004, SKG emphasizes personalized attention, aggressive legal representation, and no fees unless the case is won. With multiple offices across Florida, SKG aims to relieve clients’ financial stress and ensure they receive the compensation they deserve.

Methodology

This study analyzed theme park safety using data from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) “Summary Data” for 2018-2023. The data provided information on reported injuries, illnesses, deaths, and employment statistics for theme parks across the United States.

We calculated the incident rate for each park using the formula: (Total Number of Incidents / Annual Average Employees) x 100. This rate represents the number of reported incidents per 100 employees.

Parks were then ranked based on their 2023 incident rates, with lower rates indicating better safety records. We also examined changes in incident rates between 2018 and 2023 where data was available.

It’s important to note that not all theme parks are included in the OSHA datasets for every year, which may affect year-over-year comparisons for some parks.

The study focused on data from 2023, but historical data from 2018-2022 was used for context and to identify trends where possible.

Sources

News report about York’s Wild Kingdom: Sea Coast Online 

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