Worker Health and Safety Surveillance

Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS)

Industry and Occupation Module

Key points

  • BRFSS offers an optional industry and occupation module.
  • State participation in the industry and occupation module varies by year.
  • Learn how to access this restricted-use data set.
  • We offer tips for BRFSS interviewers collecting this information.
cover page of the Statistical Brief for the BRFSS industry and occupation optional module.

The industry and occupation module

CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) includes optional modules that states and territories can elect to include in their surveys. The BRFSS industry and occupation optional module collects important demographic information about the type of work done by employed adults.

This optional module is a good source for worker health and safety surveillance data.

If a survey participant is employedA, they are asked:

  • "What kind of business or industry do you work in, for example, hospital, elementary school, clothing manufacturing, restaurant?" (Industry)
  • "What kind of work do you do, for example, registered nurse, janitor, cashier, auto mechanic?" (Occupation)

Participants' responses are coded to standardized industry and occupation numeric codes using the NIOSH Industry and Occupation Computerized Coding System and human coders.

Request access to the industry and occupation data‎‎

The BRFSS industry and occupation data are not publicly available. If you want to analyze these data, please contact CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) Research Data Center (RDC).

Access the BRFSS public-use datasets.
Keep Reading: More about the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)

Data description by year

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 110,786
  • Number of respondents out of work <1 year: 4,794
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: Industry: 102,747 (94.8%); Occupation: 97,369 (89.8%)
  • 22 states used the industry and occupation module: California, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin, Guam

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 91,643
  • Number of respondents out of work <1 year: 7,085
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry: 86,668 (95.4%); occupation: 82,869 (91.2%)
  • 24 states used this module: California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin, Guam

  • Number of currently employed respondentsB: 99,814
  • Number of respondents out of work <1 year: 3,867
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry: 92,370 (96.1%); occupation: 89,434 (93.0%)
  • 25 states used this module: California, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 122,957
  • Number of respondents out of work <1 year: 4,649
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry: 113,015 (95.8%); occupation: 107,083 (90.8%)
  • 30 states used this module: California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, Wisconsin

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 91,307
  • Number of respondents out of work <1 year: 3,800
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry: 84,325 (96.7%); occupation: 81,771 (93.9%)
  • 22 states used this module: California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Tennessee, Washington, Wisconsin

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 121,501
  • Number of respondents out of work <1 year: 4,976
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry: 112,825 (95.4%); occupation: 109,597 (92.7%)
  • 25 states used this module: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Tennessee, Washington, Wisconsin

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 100,700
  • Number of respondents out of work for < 1 year: 4,128
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry 95,562 (91.2%), occupation: 92,586 (88.3%)
  • 25 states used this module: Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 104,885
  • Number of respondents out of work for < 1 year: 4,183
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry 101,722 (93.3%), occupation: 98,060 (89.9%)
  • 25 states used this module: Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington

  • Number of currently employed respondents:B 102,258
  • Number of respondents out of work for < 1 year: 5,069
  • Number (%) of codable records included in the dataset: industry 92,960 (86.6%), occupation: 89,342 (83.2%)
  • 21 states used this module: California, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah, Wisconsin. Washington and Wyoming used equivalent state-added questions in 2013. Their data are included in the NIOSH dataset and may be used by external researchers with permission from the state BRFSS coordinators.

Strengths and limitations

If you use the BRFSS industry and occupation data, please note the following data strengths and limitations.

The large sample size allows for analyses of major and detailed industry and occupation groups.

  • Not all states collect this data, so the data are not nationally representative. You can still compare between years, just restrict your comparisons to states that administered the module in those years.
  • BRFSS data are not representative of individual industries and occupations, or active-duty military.
  • Some industries and occupations may be misclassified due to non-specific responses.

Resources and publications

Chart the data‎

You can use the NIOSH Worker Health Charts tool to quickly analyze industry and occupation data trends without requesting access to the data.


The following materials provide guidance for BRFSS interviewers on how to collect high quality industry and occupation data.

Learn more general tips about collecting industry and occupation data.

See the NIOSHTIC-2 database search results on BRFSS. NIOSHTIC-2 is a database of occupational safety and health publications funded in whole or in part by NIOSH.

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Content Source:
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
  1. "Employed" is defined as being employed for wages, self-employed, or out of work for less than one year at the time of their interview.
  2. Note: the sample size varies by year and which states participate.