14 December 2010
Safe Work Australia Chair, Mr Tom Phillips AM, today announced the release of a research report on workplace fatalities, Work-related Traumatic Injury Fatalities, Australia 2007-08.
This is the fifth report in a series that estimates the number of workers and bystanders killed each year due to work-related injuries. To achieve the best estimate, Safe Work Australia examines three datasets that contain information on work-related fatalities.
These datasets include the National Data Set for Compensation-based Statistics, the Notified Fatalities Collection and the National Coroners Information System. Not all traumatic work-related fatalities are notified to work health and safety authorities.
Mr Phillips said that the report is a comprehensive source of information on work-related fatalities across Australia for the financial year.
“By publishing data from a range of data sources, Safe Work Australia demonstrates a commitment to providing the most accurate information to improve workplace safety,” said Mr Phillips.
Some key findings of the report include:
- A total of 442 work-related traumatic injury fatalities occurred in Australia during 2007–08, a 6 per cent decrease from the 2006–07 total of 469, but above the five year average of 439.
- Of the 442 people who died of work-related injuries, 289 people were injured at work; 98 people died while commuting to or from work and 55 bystanders died as a result of someone else’s work activity.
- Deaths in all three categories above were lower than in 2006–07, with fatalities due to commuting reaching a five year low.
“All Australians need to focus on safety in the workplace and undertake measures to improve safety standards. These figures reinforce the message that safety should be everybody’s number one priority.
“Any work-related death is one too many. The release of this report shows that while we are making progress in some areas, more can be done to ensure safer workplaces for all Australians,” Mr Phillips said.
The report is available at www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au
Safe Work Australia media enquiries: 0434 664 294