Management Information: Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease reports made by employers to HSE and Local Authorities since 10 April 2020
Under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), certain cases of COVID-19 in workers where there is reasonable evidence to suggest that it was caused by occupational exposure are reportable to the relevant enforcing authority.
On 1 April 2022, revised guidance on RIDDOR reporting requirements for COVID-19 was issued. Since 1 April 2022 only cases of COVID-19 due to either deliberately working with the virus (such as in a laboratory) or being incidentally exposed to the virus from working in environments where people are known to have COVID-19 (for example in health and social care) are reportable. Cases due to general transmission (either worker-to-worker, or from contact with members of the public) are no longer reportable. [See note 2 below].
Given this change in reporting requirements, the number of reports made from April 2022 onwards is not directly comparable with earlier time periods.
Latest published figures show 2,662 notifications of COVID-19 in workers where occupational exposure is suspected were made in the 9-month period April-December 2022, with numbers remaining low (ranging between 100-200 reports per month) in each of the most recent four months (see also notes 1- 4 below).
Total suspected occupational COVID-19 reports made by employers to the Enforcing Authorities, 10 April 2020 to 31 December 2022
| Month | Monthly number of reports submitted | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-April 2022 reporting requirements | -1 | 23.5 | |
| Apr 20 (part) | 2053 | ||
| May 20 | 3793 | ||
| Jun 20 | 1856 | ||
| Jul 20 | 809 | ||
| Aug 20 | 534 | ||
| Sep 20 | 1105 | ||
| Oct 20 | 2612 | ||
| Nov 20 | 3704 | ||
| Dec 20 | 4040 | ||
| Jan 21 | 5710 | ||
| Feb 21 | 4183 | ||
| Mar 21 | 1711 | ||
| Apr 21 | 690 | ||
| May 21 | 344 | ||
| Jun 21 | 590 | ||
| Jul 21 | 741 | ||
| Aug 21 | 703 | ||
| Sep 21 | 796 | ||
| Oct 21 | 892 | ||
| Nov 21 | 925 | ||
| Dec 21 | 1269 | ||
| Jan 22 | 2624 | ||
| Feb 22 | 1220 | ||
| Mar 22 | 1554 | ||
| Apr 22 | 738 | ||
| May 22 | 294 | ||
| Jun 22 | 382 | ||
| Jul 22 | 478 | ||
| Aug 22 | 237 | ||
| Sep 22 | 113 | ||
| Oct 22 | 197 | ||
| Nov 22 | 103 | ||
| Dec 22 | 120 | ||
Of the 2,662 notifications of COVID-19 in workers reported under RIDDOR since 1 April 2022:
- Seventy-two per cent of all reports were recorded by employers as being for workers in the health and social work sector (including for example, hospitals, residential homes and day care). However, the true percentage of reports in this sector will be higher as many reports are mis-classified by employers, particularly to the accommodation sector and to other personal services. These two sectors accounted for 6% and 17% of reports in the latest 9-month period respectively.
- Eighty-one per cent of worker COVID-19 reports received over this period were from workplaces in England, 12% in Scotland and 6% in Wales. The number of reports by country can be affected by reporting of multiple cases by individual employers.
For more details, see the table in the link below.
Notes
- Data on number of COVID-19 RIDDOR reports made by duty holders is available from 10 April 2020. This is the date the statutory disease reporting form was changed to enable systematic identification of COVID-19 reports. (Guidance was also issued on this date around reporting requirements for COVID-19 deaths under RIDDOR).
- On 1 April 2022, further guidance was issued on reporting requirements for COVID-19 to bring such reporting back in line with HSE’s core role of regulating businesses to ensure workers and members of the public are protected from the harm created by work activities. From 1 April 2022, cases of COVID-19 due to general transmission in the workplace (either worker-to-worker or from contact with members of the public) are no longer reportable. Full details on reporting requirements post April 2022 can be found on our guide RIDDOR reporting of COVID-19.
- Data is as reported by employers. While individual cases are reviewed by the relevant enforcing authority, these counts do not reflect the outcome of these reviews. It should also be noted that as the data is ‘as-reported’ by employers there is potential for some error in some of the reported data items.
- This data is intended to provide an indicator of the numbers being reported to the enforcing authorities and how this changes over time rather than an accurate count of the absolute number of occupational COVID-19 cases. It should be noted that many of the reports made reflect historic cases, sometimes from up to several months ago.
Advance notice: Next planned update
These numbers will next be updated at 10.00am on Monday 17 April 2023.