Statistics on workplace Disease and Injuries

• 107,355 serious claims lodged in the 2014-15 financial year
• 90% of serious claims were due to injuries and musculoskeletal disorders
  • With the most common being traumatic joint / ligament and muscle / tendon injuries (almost 45%).
• 10% of serious claims were due to diseases
  • with the most common mental disorders – almost 6%

* A serious claim is an accepted workers’ comp. claim that results in a total absence from work of 1 working week or more 

Statistics for Work related Fatalities

• As at 8 December, 165 Australian workers have been killed at work in 2017
• In the 14 years from 2003 to 2016, 3,414 workers lost their lives in work-related incidents.

• In 2016, there were 182 worker fatalities, equating to a fatality rate of 1.5 fatalities per 100,000 workers

  • This is the lowest rate since the series began in 2003

Cost of injury and illness

• In 2012–13, work-related injury and disease cost the Australian economy $61.8 billion

https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/statistics-and-research