Fewer deaths and injuries in manufacturing, but improvement still needed

Policy Release

Date:

12 November 2010

Fewer people in manufacturing are dying or being injured by their work, according to the latest figures by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

In Britain, between April 2009 and March 2010, the number of reported major injuries, such as amputations or broken bones fell by eleven percent from 4,331 to 3,863.

During the same period, reported injuries that kept workers away from work for three or more days fell by 16 percent from 17,460 to 14,678.

22 people died in manufacturing during 2009/10, compared to an average of 33 in the past five years and seven fewer than in 2008/09 (see Notes to editors).

However, 158 employees per 100,000 suffer a major injury or are killed as a result of manufacturing work - 50 per cent more than the all industry average rate of 102 per 100,000.

Geoff Cox, Head of Manufacturing for HSE, said:

"We are encouraged that there are fewer deaths and injuries in manufacturing this year, but we cannot afford to become complacent. The actual rate of death and injury, though that has fallen too, is still significantly higher than that taken from across all workplaces.

"As Britain moves out of recession and work starts up again, we must continue to focus on real health and safety. History shows that accident rates rise in such periods, as new workers are taken on and industry works closer to its capacity. We don't want these improvements to be lost in the economic recovery."

Across all industries in 2009/10, 152 workers were fatally injured in Britain - down from 179 the previous year. This is the lowest level on record, with 0.5 deaths per 100,000 workers.

Notes to editors

1. Provisional fatality figures published in June for 2009/10 state that 24 people died in manufacturing. This figure includes two waste and recycling-related deaths. This press release excludes fatalities and injuries in the waste and recycling sub-sector for which a separate press release is available
2. 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 1995 (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 four 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).
3. The Health and Safety Executive is Britain's national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims 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. www.hse.gov.uk

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