HSE Press Release: E161:04 - 18 November 2004
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has today published the latest statistics on workplace safety, work-related ill-health and enforcement action in Great Britain.'Health and Safety Statistics Highlights 2003/04' [650kb] presents the top-level statistics - including reports on progress against the targets set in the 'Revitalising Health and Safety' strategy - while more detailed data and commentary are available on the HSE website. (Other statistics have been published earlier in the year: please see Notes to editors.)
For workplace injuries, the new figures include 2003/04 data on non-fatal injuries notified by employers and others under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR), supplemented by injury statistics from the Labour Force Survey (LFS).
The main features of the injuries statistics are as follows:
There were 235 fatal injuries to workers in 2003/04, an increase of 4% on the 2002/03 figure of 227 …
The rate of fatal injury to workers increased in 2003/04 from 0.79
deaths per hundred thousand workers to 0.81, an increase of 3%. The
trend in both the number and rate of fatal injuries was generally
downwards in the 1990s; however there have been two rises since
then, in 2000/01 and in 2003/04.
… and around half occurred in the two industries of
construction and agriculture, forestry and fishing.
114 of the fatalities (49%) occurred in the two industries of
construction (70) and agriculture, forestry and fishing (44). Nine
per cent of all fatal injuries to workers in 2003/04 occurred in a
single incident when 21 people drowned while harvesting cockles in
Morecambe Bay.
The number of reported major injuries to employees was 30 666 in 2003/04, up 9% on the previous year, with increases in many service industries, which are likely to reflect changes in reporting behaviour …
The rate of reported major injury to employees rose by 9% in 2003/04, from 111.1 to 120.7 injuries per hundred thousand employees. The rate of reported major injury fell steadily from 1997/98 to 2000/01; however in the three years since then both the number and rate have increased, principally in public administration, retail and wholesale trade, hotels and catering, business activities and transport.
… and over a third of all reported major injuries were caused by slipping and tripping.
The most common kind of major injury to employees continues to be
slipping and tripping, accounting for 37% of major injuries in
2003/04. Being injured while handling, lifting or carrying
accounted for 14% of major injuries in 2003/04, being struck by a
moving or falling object 13% and falling from a height 13%.
The number of reported over-3-day injuries to employees increased by 0.7% in 2003/04 to 129 143 …
The rate of over-3-day injury to employees increased in 2003/04,
from 506.5 to 508.4 injuries per hundred thousand employees. The
rate of over-3-day injury fell steadily from 1997/98 to 2002/03 but
increased in 2003/04.
… of which two-fifths were caused by handling, lifting and carrying.
The most common kind of over-3-day injury to employees continues to
be being injured while handling, lifting or carrying, accounting
for 41% of over-3-day injuries in 2003/04. Slipping and tripping
accounted for 24% of over-3-day injuries and being struck by a
moving or falling object accounted for 11%.
The rate of reportable injury estimated from the Labour Force Survey was 1440 per 100 000 workers in 2002/03, down by 4.6% on the previous year …
Rates of reportable injury are available annually from the LFS and
the latest is from 2003/04. Annual results are subject to sampling
fluctuation and LFS rates are presented mostly as three-year
averages to smooth such fluctuation. The averaged rate was
previously relatively stable between 1997/98 and 2001/02; however,
the annual LFS rate has fallen each year since 1999/2000, by 3.2%
to 2002/03 and by a further 12.5% in 2003/04.
… while the global level of reporting of non-fatal injury was 42.9%, an increase from 41.3% in 2001/02.
When compared with the RIDDOR rate of reported major and over-3-day
injury, the LFS allows us to estimate the level of reporting of
non-fatal injuries. This increased in 2002/03 after falling
steadily since 1997/98.
The rate of reportable injury estimated from the Labour Force Survey was highest in Wales, the East Midlands, the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber and the South West.
The rates per 100 000 workers in 2002/03 were 1670 in Wales, 1640
in the East Midlands, North East, and Yorkshire and the Humber, and
1590 in the South West, compared with the Great Britain average of
1440. Most differences are explained by the industrial and
occupational composition of the regions.
For work-related ill health, the key new data are results of the Self-reported Work-related Illness (SWI) Survey 2003/04. The statistics also draw on surveillance data from specialist doctors in The Health and Occupation Reporting network (THOR), claims for disablement benefit under the Department for Work and Pensions' Industrial Injuries Scheme (IIS), and deaths from mesothelioma and other occupational diseases.
The main features of the ill health statistics are as follows:
In 2003/04 an estimated 2.2 million people suffered from ill health which they thought was work-related, similar to the level in 2001/02 (2.3 million) …
A self-reported household survey carried out in 2003/04 (SWI03/04)
estimated that 2 233 000 individuals in Great Britain suffered in
that year from an illness which they believed was caused or made
worse by their current or past work. This prevalence estimate
includes long standing as well as new cases. The
prevalence rate was 5200 per 100 000 ever
employed, similar to the 5300 per 100 000 estimated by
SWI01/02.
… and 609 000 first became aware of the illness in the last 12 months, compared with 662 000 in 2001/02.
SWI03/04 estimated that there were 609 000 new cases of
work-related illness. This incidence estimate comprises people who
first became aware of their illness in the last 12 months. The
incidence rate was 2000 people per 100 000 who worked in the last
12 months (2.0%), which was lower than the 2200 per 100 000 (2.2%)
estimated by SWI01/02.
Around three-quarters of the cases of work-related illness were musculoskeletal disorders or stress …
The most common types of work-related illness were musculoskeletal
disorders (MSDs) - in particular those affecting the back and upper
limbs - and stress, depression or anxiety. In 2003/04 the estimated
prevalence of MSDs was 1 108 000 and the incidence 204 000, while
for stress, depression or anxiety the prevalence was 557 000 and
the incidence 254 000.
… but the total also includes diseases ranging from asthma and dermatitis to infections and deafness.
Other types of ill health with significant numbers of cases
reported by doctors or compensated by the Government were lung
diseases such as asthma and pneumoconioses; contact dermatitis and
other skin diseases; diarrhoeal and other infections; and disorders
related to vibration or noise.
Several thousand people die each year from diseases caused by past work exposures …
Each year an estimated 6000 people (uncertainty range 3000 to 12
000) die from cancer due to past exposures at work. Around 3500
cancer deaths are due to exposure to asbestos. For deaths other
than cancer, in 2002 around 100 died from asbestosis and nearly 300
from other types of pneumoconiosis, mostly due to coal dust and
silica.
… including nearly 1900 deaths in 2002 from mesothelioma, a cancer related to asbestos exposure.
The annual number of deaths in Great Britain from mesothelioma has
increased from 153 in 1968 to 1862 in 2002. The latest projections
suggest that the annual number will peak at a level around 1950 to
2450 deaths some time between 2011 and 2015. Deaths occurring now
reflect past industrial conditions; deaths in males aged under 45
have been falling since the early 1990s.
Based on the latest self-reporting survey, work-related ill health prevalence rates were highest in the North East, Wales, and Yorkshire and the Humber.
The estimated rates per 100 000 people ever employed in 2003/04 were 7400 in the North East, 6200 in Wales and 6000 in Yorkshire and the Humber, compared with the Great Britain average of 5200.
The statistics on health and safety at work inform the measurement of progress against the targets for reducing work-related injuries, ill health and working days lost set in the 'Revitalising Health and Safety' strategy.
HSE statisticians' latest assessments are as follows:
For the incidence rate of fatal and major injury, the latest data show little change in the rate of fatal injury …
The rate of fatal injury to workers is at a similar level in
2003/04 as it was in the base year, 1999/2000. The rate rose in
2000/01, fell in the following two years, and then rose in
2003/04.
… with a decrease in the rate of reported major injury in the more traditional production industries …
Rates of reported major injury have fallen since 1999/2000 in
construction, manufacturing and the extractive and utility supply
industries. In agriculture, the rate has fluctuated with no overall
trend.
… and an increase in some service industries such as public administration, hotels/catering and transport …
Since 2000/01, the rate of reported major injury has increased
across the services sector as a whole. Within major injuries, the
pattern of the types of injury reported by employers has also
changed over this period, with proportionally more injuries such as
lacerations, sprains, strains, contusions and superficial injuries
being reported than before. The numbers of these types of injuries
have increased each year since 2000/01.
… along with evidence to suggest that reporting levels have increased …
The largest increases in reported major injuries tend to be in
industries where the numbers of over-3-day injuries have also
increased (or stayed level), and where comparison with the LFS
suggests improved reporting of non-fatal injuries. Improved
reporting stems mainly from increases in over-3-day injuries but
there is likely to be an element of improved reporting for major
injuries in services as well which would then be reflected in the
recent increases in major injuries. However, we need more evidence
about improved reporting of major injuries in services.
.… leading to an overall judgement of no clear evidence of change in the incidence rate of fatal and major injury since 1999/2000, the base year of Revitalising.
For work-related ill health, the latest data show a fall in the incidence rate of musculoskeletal disorders …
The latest self-reporting (SWI) survey shows a statistically
significant fall in the incidence rate of work-related
musculoskeletal disorders between 2001/02 and 2003/04, from 750 to
640 per 100 000 employed in the last 12 months, though there is a
range of uncertainty around these figures. The estimated number of
new cases seen by specialist doctors (in the THOR scheme) fell in
the year to 2003, having previously been fairly stable.
… and a levelling off in the earlier rise in work-related stress …
The 2003/04 SWI survey shows no change since 2001/02 in
self-reported stress incidence: the estimated rate was 860 per 100
000 in 2003/04 and 890 in 2001/02. The available data suggest that
up to then, self-reported incidence had been increasing. THOR
specialist doctor data had also been rising up to 2001, and have
declined a little since. The level is still likely to be higher
than in 1999/2000.
… along with falls in asthma and dermatitis and a continuing rise in asbestos-related cancer …
Estimated cases of asthma seen by specialist doctors in each of the
last four years have been lower than in 1999 (and most of the
1990s), indicating a probable decrease in incidence. Specialist
doctor data for dermatitis in the last three years have been
consistently lower than in the late 1990s, also seeming to
represent a downward trend. The number of deaths from mesothelioma
has continued to rise, reflecting past asbestos exposures.
… leading to the overall assessment that there is no clear evidence of change in work-related ill health incidence since 1999/2000, the Revitalising base year.
For working days lost per 100 000 workers, the figures for
2003/04 show no statistically significant change since 2000-02, the
closest available to the Revitalising base year.
The figure was 170 000 per 100 000 workers in 2003/04 compared with
180 000 in 2000-02.
The key statistics are as follows:
The latest figures show a rise in the number of enforcement notices issued …
In 2002/03, the most recent year for which data from all enforcing
authorities are available, there were 19 104 enforcement notices
issued, a 12% increase on the previous year.
… and falls in the numbers of dangerous occurrences and gas-related fatalities.
There was an 8% decrease in the number of dangerous occurrences
reported to HSE in 2003/04 from 9946 to 9120. The number of fatal
injuries relating to the supply and use of flammable gas fell in
2003/04, from 25 to 18.
1 From 1992/93 to 2000/01, statistics relating to health and
safety at work were published in an annual volume 'Health and
Safety Statistics' and in the Health and Safety
Commission's Annual Report. For the first time in 2001/02, the
top-level statistics were released in a 'Highlights'
document and the details, together with supplementary information,
were made available simultaneously on the HSE website.
'Health and
Safety Statistics Highlights 2003/04' [650kb] is the third
publication in this format.
2 Full details of HSE's
enforcement action were released on 16 November 2004 in the
Offences and Penalties
Report.
3 As well as giving data for Great Britain, the statistics released today include figures for Scotland, Wales and the Government Office regions of England. Statistics briefings for each of these are available on the website at www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/regions/index.htm.
4 The 'Revitalising Health and Safety' strategy statement, launched by the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chair of the Health and Safety Commission in June 2000, set national targets to reduce the incidence rate of fatal and major injuries, the incidence rate of work-related ill health and the rate of working days lost from work-related injury and ill health. The targets relating to ill health are also featured in 'Securing Health Together: A long-term occupational health strategy for Great Britain', launched by the Health and Safety Commission and Executive, in association with other government departments, in July 2000.
5 Arrangements for 'National Statistics' were also launched by the government in July 2000, to enhance the integrity and quality of official statistics. The National Statistics badge, which is on 'Health and Safety Statistics Highlights 2003/04' and this press release, means that the statistics concerned must be produced to high professional standards, subject to regular quality assurance reviews and free from political interference. To achieve this, the National Statistics arrangements include an independent Statistics Commission, a Code of Practice (released in October 2002) with supporting protocols (issued between 2002 and 2004), and mechanisms for consultation with stakeholders. Further details are on the Office for National Statistics website.
Copies of 'Health and Safety Statistics Highlights 2003/04' are available online
All enquiries from journalists should be directed to the HSE Press Office
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