Working at a gas station carries real risks that go beyond what most people expect. The job combines exposure to toxic chemical vapors, a high rate of workplace violence, fire hazards, and the health toll of irregular shift work. Three-quarters of all workplace deaths at gasoline stations are homicides, making violent crime the single biggest threat. But the slower, less visible dangers of breathing gasoline fumes day after day and working overnight shifts alone also take a measurable toll on long-term health.
Violent Crime Is the Leading Cause of Death
Gas stations are one of the most robbery-prone workplaces in the country. Between 2003 and 2008, gasoline stations accounted for 22 percent of all workplace homicides in the entire retail sector, second only to food and beverage stores. Homicide was responsible for three out of every four on-the-job deaths at gas stations during that period, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Convenience stores, which overlap heavily with gas station operations, showed an even starker picture: 94 percent of employees killed at convenience stores died from homicide.
The pattern is driven by a few factors that make gas stations attractive targets. They handle cash, they’re open late, and they often have just one employee on site. Rural and suburban locations can sit far from the nearest police response. If you work the register, especially at night, robbery is a realistic occupational hazard rather than a remote possibility.
The psychological aftermath of a robbery can linger long after the physical event. Studies on robbery victims in similar retail settings found that roughly 7 percent developed post-traumatic stress disorder, and about 11 to 15 percent experienced acute stress disorder in the immediate aftermath. When researchers relaxed the diagnostic criteria slightly, nearly one in five victims showed significant trauma symptoms. Even employees who aren’t physically harmed during a robbery can carry anxiety, hypervigilance, and sleep disruption for months.
Gasoline Vapor Exposure and Cancer Risk
Every time a customer fills up, gasoline vapors escape into the air around the pump. Workers who spend hours near fueling areas inhale these vapors repeatedly throughout a shift. The chemical of greatest concern is benzene, a known carcinogen found in gasoline. A study of 151 gas station workers in Thailand measured average inhaled benzene concentrations of about 10.8 parts per billion, with peak exposures reaching nearly 137 ppb for some workers. Urine tests confirmed that the benzene was being absorbed into their bodies, not just passing through the lungs.
Long-term benzene exposure is linked to leukemia and other blood cancers. Even at levels below regulatory limits, chronic low-dose exposure raises concern because the damage accumulates over years. Workers who pump fuel for customers (still required in some states like New Jersey and Oregon) face higher exposure than those who stay inside the store, but indoor air at gas stations also contains measurable levels of volatile organic compounds that seep in from the forecourt.
Respiratory Damage Over Time
Beyond cancer risk, regular inhalation of gasoline vapors and fumes gradually chips away at lung function. Large-scale research on workers exposed to vapors, gases, dust, and fumes has found a 53 percent increased risk of chronic cough compared to unexposed workers. The risk of chronic bronchitis rises by about 74 percent for those exposed to a combination of dust and chemical vapors, which describes many gas station environments where workers alternate between pumping fuel and cleaning.
Lung function testing tells a similar story. Workers regularly exposed to gas and vapor fumes show measurable declines in how efficiently their lungs move air, particularly in the smaller airways. This kind of decline doesn’t always produce obvious symptoms early on, but over years it can progress toward chronic obstructive lung disease, reduced exercise tolerance, and shortness of breath during everyday activities. Workers who smoke face compounded risk, since tobacco and chemical vapor exposure amplify each other’s damage.
Fire and Explosion Hazards
Fires at gas stations are less common than many people assume, but they do happen. Fire departments responded to an average of 4,150 fires per year at gas station properties between 2014 and 2018, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Most of these were vehicle fires (about 2,340 per year), followed by fires involving outdoor vegetation or equipment (670 per year) and structure fires (550 per year).
The causes might surprise you. Electrical problems, not gasoline ignition, were the leading cause of structure fires at gas stations, responsible for 21 percent of cases and more than half the property damage. Only 4 percent of structure fires started with gasoline catching fire. Similarly, three-quarters of vehicle fires at gas stations resulted from mechanical or electrical malfunctions in the vehicles themselves, not from refueling accidents. Still, the combination of flammable liquid, electrical equipment, and high customer traffic means workers need to stay alert. Vehicle fires alone caused an average of 26 civilian injuries per year across U.S. gas stations.
Night Shifts and Working Alone
Many gas stations operate 24 hours, and overnight shifts are often staffed by a single worker. This creates two overlapping problems: the health effects of shift work and the safety risk of being alone during the hours when robberies are most likely.
Shift work disrupts the body’s internal clock in ways that go well beyond feeling tired. Night shift workers face a 28 percent higher risk of workplace accidents and errors compared to daytime workers, according to CDC data. The sleep deprivation that comes with rotating or overnight schedules impairs concentration, slows reaction time, and degrades decision-making. Over the long term, shift workers face elevated rates of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, gastrointestinal problems, obesity, depression, and even certain cancers. The hormonal disruption from irregular sleep throws off appetite regulation, blood sugar control, and immune function.
For gas station workers specifically, fatigue compounds every other risk on this list. A tired worker is slower to recognize a threatening customer, less attentive to spill hazards, and more likely to make errors around equipment. The isolation of working alone at 3 a.m. means there’s no coworker to call for help, share the workload, or serve as a witness during a confrontation.
Everyday Injuries on the Job
In 2023, gasoline stations recorded roughly 15,800 nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses across the U.S. Of those, about 8,200 were serious enough to require time away from work, job restrictions, or transfer to different duties. Around 2,400 cases involved days away from work entirely. The most common injuries in this type of retail environment include slips and falls on wet pavement or spilled fuel, muscle strains from lifting merchandise or cleaning equipment, burns, and cuts. Wet surfaces around fuel pumps are a constant hazard, especially in cold weather when water and fuel residue freeze into a slick film.
Which Risks Are Highest
Not every gas station job carries the same level of danger. Your actual risk depends on several factors: whether you work nights or days, whether you’re the only employee on shift, whether your station is in a high-crime area, how much time you spend near the pumps versus inside the store, and whether the station has modern vapor recovery systems on its fuel dispensers. A daytime cashier at a busy suburban station faces a very different risk profile than a lone overnight attendant at a rural stop.
The risks that accumulate silently, like vapor exposure and shift work disruption, are arguably more insidious than the dramatic ones. A robbery is terrifying but statistically unlikely on any given shift. Breathing low levels of benzene five days a week for several years, on the other hand, is a near-certainty for many gas station employees, and the health consequences may not surface until long after they’ve moved on to a different job.