144 workplace fatalities in 2018, 13 in manufacturing

There were 144 workplace fatalities in 2018; of them 13 were in the manufacturing industry sector, according to the latest statistics released by Safe Work Australia.

Australia’s fatality rate has declined by 62% from a peak in 2007. While the number and rate of worker fatalities have continued to decline in line with long-term trends, they are not a cause for celebration, said Safe Work Australia CEO Michelle Baxter.

“Every work-related fatality is a tragedy, and there’s a lot more work to be done,” she said.

“We know that work-related fatalities, injuries and disease have a devastating impact on workers and their families. Understanding the latest statistics can help identify ways to prevent these.”

Along with a reduction in fatalities, the rate of serious workers compensation claims continued to trend downwards, decreasing to 5.5 serious claims per million hours worked in 2017–18. Body stressing represents 36% of the claims, and the falls, trips and slips category represents 26% of the serious workers compensation claims 2017–18. Around 12% of the claims were related to the manufacturing industry sector.

The full details of the ‘Key work health and safety statistics, Australia 2019’ report can be downloaded here.

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