Increased workplace safety enforcement and injury prevention efforts has helped Indiana's rate of on-the-job illnesses and injuries fall in 2008, the Indiana Department of Labor said Thursday.

Nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses stood at a rate of 4.9 incidents per 100 workers, down from 5.2 incidents a year earlier. The rate has been on a steady decline since 2001, when the rate was 7.4 incidents per 100 workers. The state labor department said the 2008 result was the lowest since it began to track in this method since 1992.

Nationally, the number of injuries and illnesses reported from private industry employers dropped to 3.7 million cases in 2008, from 4 million in 2007.

The data originated from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Injuries and Illnesses survey.

State Labor Commissioner Lori Torres said the findings are encouraging news for workers and the business community.

"I am especially enthusiastic about the progress made by the construction industry, as that industry had not seen a reduction in worker injury and illness rates for the past three years," Torres said in a news release.

All major industries, except for agriculture, had their lowest injury rate on record. The construction industry posted a 19 percent year-over-year decline in its occupational injury and illness rate. The agriculture, forestry and fishing industry had the highest illness and injury rate at 7.6 incidents per 100 workers.

However, data didn't show improvements for state and local government employees. The incidence of injuries and illnesses for this group remained unchanged at 5.7 cases per 100 workers.

Earlier this year, the state said workplace fatalities increased 4 percent in 2008 compared to 2007, but last year's tally -- 132 deaths -- was the second lowest since data collection began in 1992.