Working days lost

During the last decade the total number of days taken off work due to work-related illness and workplace injuries has fallen.

The latest information from the Labour Force Survey for 2011/12 shows:

• Around 27.0 million working days were lost in total, 22.7 million due to work-related illness and 4.3 million due to workplace injuries.
• On average, each person suffering took around 17 days off work, 21 days for ill health and 7.3 days for injuries on average.
• The number of working days lost has fallen over the past decade.
• Stress, depression or anxiety and musculoskeletal disorders accounted for the majority of days lost due to work-related ill health, 10.4 and 7.5 million days respectively.
• The average days lost per case for stress, depression or anxiety (24 days) was higher than for musculoskeletal disorders (17 days).

Estimated working days lost due to work-related incidents

Note: average sampling variability +/- 9% on the total

Note: No data on working days lost was collected in 2002/03.

• More on working days lost