Is Great Britain entering a new era of workplace safety? While accidents at work are unfortunately still prevalent, the latest official statistics suggest a sunnier outlook for many industries.
According to employer reports sent to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Britain’s workplace health and safety regulator, the rate of non-fatal incidents in the workplace is decreasing. However, the picture is not as positive in every sector.
Workplace Accident Statistics Show Promising Signs
Employers reported 60,645 non-fatal workplace injuries under The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) in 2022/23. Based on the HSE-published figures, this marks the lowest volume of injuries in the past five years, excluding the Covid-impacted 2020/21 period.
The figure is 3% lower than the 62,481 accidents at work reported in 2021/22. While the numbers only account for incidents flagged by employers under the specific requirements for a RIDDOR report, they offer an indication that workplace accidents are on the wane.
Human health and social work, a sector that includes healthcare and social care work, observed an 11% fall from 2021/22 to 2022/23. Wholesale and retail also saw a 10% drop in workplace injury reports, while there were 185 fewer people hurt in construction accidents.
In fact, fewer injuries were reported in all industries in 2022/23 than in the pre-Covid period covering 2018/19, with the exception of education and information and communication services.
As technology, communications and safety regulations continue to improve, the hope among UK industries is that the positive trend will persist.
Can An Employee Sue For A Workplace Injury?
These numbers might well be a drop in the ocean, as far as workplace injuries go. In fact, the 2022/23 Labour Force Survey used worker reports to estimate that 561,000 employees suffered some form of harm at work.
That isn’t to say that injuries are automatically an employer’s fault. As long as they uphold their duties under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, an employer should not expect to be liable for an accident. Performing regular risk assessments and providing proper training are among the steps that can maintain workplace safety and protect employees from harmful accidents.
However, an injury at work claim becomes possible for a worker if they were hurt in an accident the employer caused or should have reasonably prevented.
Even while statistics point towards a positive trend, the ongoing risk of preventable accidents will maintain pressure on employers to remain vigilant.
Health And Social Work Leads Among Most Dangerous Industries
The ever-growing strain on Britain’s health sector is never far from the headlines, and HSE statistics suggest a physical toll on its employees.
10,384 injuries were suffered by employees working in services including hospitals, nursing homes and social work. This figure, combined with the 10,382 non-fatal incidents in manufacturing, makes up more than a third of the 2022/23 total.
Perhaps remarkably, the education sector features among the five most injury-prone industries. While more accidents were reported in construction from 2018 to 2021, there were 807 more injuries in education than in the construction industry across Britain in 2022/23. Construction does, however, lead every industry in fatal accidents. 45 workers were killed while working during the latest reporting period.
The top five industry groups for total 2022/23 non-fatal injuries were:
- Health and social work activities: 10,834 reports.
- Manufacturing: 10,382.
- Transportation and storage: 8,059.
- Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles: 6,873.
- Education: 4,845.
Information And Communication Numbers Offer Cause For Concern
The information and communication sector has a significant scope, covering a multitude of activities from maintaining and repairing telecommunications networks to publishing and producing television, motion picture or radio programmes.
While many industries are spotting a decrease in employer reports of non-fatal injuries, information and communication employers are filling in their accident books more than ever. The latest figures show a 14% rise in reports sent under RIDDOR.
That is followed by arts, entertainment and recreation. Thanks mostly to sports, amusement and recreation activities, which fall under this banner, the number of non-fatal injuries reported has gone up by 10%.
There has also been a notable rise in cases in the food and accommodation sector. Injuries have inclined sharply to 3,992 in 2022/23, more than double the – albeit slightly Covid-affected – 1,771 incidents flagged in 2020/21.
Water supply, sewerage and waste management, meanwhile, saw 804 non-fatal injuries reported per 100,000 workers. This puts it far clear of any other broad industry group in terms of injury rate, due in large part to the 1,616 sustained by people handling waste collection, treatment and disposal.
Birmingham Remains Capital Of Non-Fatal Work Injuries
As was the case in each of the four reporting periods preceding it, Birmingham reported more non-fatal incidents than any local or unitary authority in Britain. The 1,031 injuries brought to the HSE’s attention by employers was comfortably clear of the 799 flagged in the Glasgow City region.
The City of Westminster was the epicentre of workplace injuries in London, recording 660 incidents. It marked a 15% increase on the 2021/22 tally, the most significant increase for any area recording more than 300 cases. Its near neighbour to the west, Hammersmith and Fulham, went the opposite way with a 45% drop in non-fatal injury reports.
The numbers look more positive on Merseyside, despite Liverpool recording more injuries than all but four areas. Their 581 cases marked a 12% drop on the year prior, while the north Merseyside borough of Sefton witnessed injury reports plummet by a national high of 67%.
In relative terms, North Warwickshire was the most dangerous place to work in 2022/23, clocking 852 injuries per 100,000 workers.
The top five authority areas for non-fatal injuries in 2022/23 were:
- Birmingham: 1,031 reports.
- Glasgow City: 799.
- Leeds: 778.
- Westminster: 660.
- Liverpool: 581.
David Prior
David Prior is the editor of Today News, responsible for the overall editorial strategy. He is an NCTJ-qualified journalist with over 20 years’ experience, and is also editor of the award-winning hyperlocal news title Altrincham Today. His LinkedIn profile is here.
