HSE 2015/2016 Work Related Accident and Fatality Statistics – Workplace Deaths Increase to 144

HSE 2015/2016 Work Related Accident and Fatality Statistics – Workplace Deaths Increase to 144:
To: All Branches
Dear Colleagues,
The HSE have published annual data for work-related fatal accidents in Great Britain’s workplaces.
The HSE states that the long term trend has seen the rate of fatalities more than halve over the last 20 years. However, this year’s figures indicate that 144 people were killed while at work in 2015/2016 – up from 142 in 2014/2015 and the number of work related accidents and cases of ill health remains high.
The fatal injury figures do not include fatal at work road accidents or work-related deaths from fatal diseases.
In each of the last five years, the number of fatal injuries has been:-
2014/15 – 142 workers died

2013/14 – 136 workers died

2012/13 – 150 workers died

2011/12 – 171 workers died

2010/11 – 175 workers died

2009/10 – 147 workers died
The Health and Safety Executive has called on employers in all sectors to learn lessons and to ensure that their workers return home safe from work each day.
One death at work or life needlessly shortened, is one too many and behind every statistic lies a real story of loss and heartbreak and families left to grieve.
The HSE and UK government continue to boast that Great Britain has one of the best health and safety systems in the world, but we should always be looking to improve and to prevent incidents injuring workers or that cost workers’ lives.
Whilst proclaiming how good the UK’s Health and Safety record is, the anti-health and safety Tory government and ‘puppet’ HSE should remind themselves of the key work-related accident and ill health figures for Great Britain for last year (2014/15):-
1.2 million working people suffering from a work-related illness, 2,515 Mesothelioma deaths due to past asbestos exposures, 144 workers killed at work, 76,000 injuries to employees reported under RIDDOR, 611,000 injuries occurred at work, according to the Labour Force Survey, 27.3 million working days lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury, £14.3 billion estimated cost of injuries and ill health from current working conditions, Stress accounted for 35% of work-related ill health cases.
This year the HSE travelled the country asking industry representatives, employers, trade unions and others to work together to ‘help GB work well’ in order to reduce work related accidents and ill health and help keep Britain’s workers alive!
The new HSE figures show the rate of fatal accidents in key industrial sectors as follows:-
43 Construction

27 Agriculture

27 Manufacturing  

6 Waste and Recycling

103 Members of the Public (36 of those occurring on railways)
The highest fatal accident rates across all UK countries and regions were:- Wales – 0.93 per 100,000 workers; Scotland – 0.60 per 100,000 workers; Yorkshire and the Humber – 0.58 per 100,000 workers. The three were also the highest when averaged across the last five-year time period to 2014/15.
However, it should be noted that differences are strongly influenced by variations in the mix of industries and occupations. For example, in Scotland and Wales compared to England there are relatively more workers in higher-risk industries. Also, in London and the South East, there is a much higher proportion of workers in low-risk occupations than across the rest of England.
The HSE states that the latest statistics confirm the UK to be one of the safest places to work in Europe, having one of the lowest rates of fatal injuries to workers in leading industrial nations. When combining Great Britain and Northern Ireland data on fatal injuries, figures for the UK compare as follows with other EU member states:-
Germany (0.81)

Italy (1.24)

Spain (1.55)

France (2.94)
The HSE has also released the latest available figures on deaths from the asbestos-related cancer Mesothelioma, contracted through past exposure to asbestos and one of the few work related diseases where deaths can be counted directly. Mesothelioma killed 2,515 people in Great Britain compared to 2,556 the previous year.
A more detailed assessment of the data will be provided as part of the annual HSE Health and Safety Statistics release in early November.
Further information on these statistics can be found at http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/fatals.htm
The Health and Safety Executive is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. Its role is to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training, new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement.
The reporting of health and safety incidents at work is a statutory requirement, set out under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR). A reportable incident includes: a death or major injury; any accident which does not result in major injury, but the injured person still has to take seven or more days off their normal work to recover; a work related disease; a member of the public being injured as a result of work related activity and taken to hospital for treatment; or a dangerous occurrence, which does not result in a serious injury, but could have done.
Yours sincerely
Dave Joyce

National Health, Safety & Environment Officer
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Attachment 1 – 16LTB429 HSE 2015-2016 Work Related Accident and Fatality Statistics