The HSE has released it's latest UK fatal injury statistics for 2017-18, reporting that a total of 144 UK workers were killed at work.
The headline figures show self-employed workers and employees in the agricultural and waste/recycling sectors carry the highest risk. If you look at the fatal injury rate in terms of the number of fatalities per 100,000 workers employed, Agriculture and Waste & Recycling come out worst, with a rate of injury some 18 and 16 times as high as the average across all industries respectively. The rate of fatal injury in Construction, while around 4 times as high as the average rate across all industries, is considerably less than the rate in either Agriculture or Waste & Recycling, despite accounting for a greater number of cases than these sectors. Both the Manufacturing and Transportation & Storage sectors have a rate of fatal injury around 1.5 to 2 times the average rate across all industries. Mining and Quarrying is around five times as high as the average rate across all industries and broadly similar to that seen in Construction.
Around one third of fatal injuries in both 2017/18 and the five year-period 2013/14-2017/18, were to self-employed workers. The updated injuries by accident type show 35 fatal injuries to workers were due to falls from a height compared to 27 in 2016/17. Being struck by a moving vehicle accounted for 26 fatal injuries to workers in 2017/18 compared with 30 in 2016/17 and an annual average of 26 over the period 2013/14-2017/18.
Whilst the UK consistently has one of the lowest rates of fatal injury across the EU, we should all be wary of complacency and remember the countless times a HSE prosecution concludes with the phrase " This was an entirely preventable accident". Whether it's checking a forklift is safe to use, reporting a near miss or risk assessing a work project, SG World is in the business of helping you prevent the preventable.