The state’s largest carrier of workers’ compensation insurance has advised employees across the state: beware of Jan. 9.

Pinnacol Assurance found that this date was consistently the most dangerous for worker injuries in the past five years. An average of 198 employees experience injuries on this day, the most common of which are slips, trips and falls.

“It’s no surprise that we see a lot of these injuries,” said Ellen Sarvay, a Pinnacol safety consultant. “More awareness, preparation and caution in bad weather could help reduce these injuries significantly.”

Office workers and those in the healthcare industry were especially at risk. Getting into and out of cars in parking lots is what Pinnacol calls a “little-known danger zone.” Sarvay advises that as people transfer their weight, keep three points of contact with a hard surface to avoid losing footing on slippery ground.

She added that employers also have a responsibility to keep walkways and parking lots well-lit and free of snow. That could mean placing mats indoors to prevent tracking snow and creating slippery surfaces.

Not every sector is most at risk on Jan. 9. Pinnacol also disclosed that statistically, the most injury-prone day for construction workers is July 28. For service and hospitality employees, it is July 13, and for educators, it is Feb. 4.

Pinnacol reported that in 2018 it received close to 44,000 claims in Colorado.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated.