Statistics released today (5 Nov) by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) show fatalities in the waste sector was below the annual average for 2019/20.
Five fatal injuries to waste and recycling workers were recorded for the year 2019/20. This is below the annual average over the last five years – the average being nine. However, the numbers can be prone to year-on-year fluctuations, HSE says.
Looking at the fatal injury rate in terms of the number of fatalities per 100,000 workers employed, agriculture, forestry and fishing and waste and recycling continue to come out worst, the HSE says, with a rate of fatal injury some 18 times as high as the average across all industries.
We must continue to drive home the importance of managing risk and promoting behaviours to ensure employers work right so that workers are able to go home healthy and safe at the end of each day – HSE
The HSE figures show that Great Britain is still one of the safest places in the world to work with the lowest number of deaths on record.
The annual report by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) includes statistics for work-related ill health, workplace injuries, working days lost, enforcement action taken, and the associated costs to Great Britain.
The emergence of COVID-19 as a national health issue at the end of final quarter of 2019/20 does not appear to be the main driver of changes seen in the 2019/20 data, although it is possible that COVID-19 may be a contributory factor.
Total UK figures at a glance
- 111 fatal injuries at work
- 1.6 million working people suffering from a work-related illness
- 38.8 million working days lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury
- 325 cases were prosecuted and resulted in a conviction. Fines from convictions totalled £35.8 million
Scale of the challenge
In response to the report, Sarah Newton, HSE Chair said: “The Covid pandemic has focussed attention on the health and safety issues people face in the workplace. HSE remains committed to taking action where workers are not protected, to ensure the guidance and assistance we provide for employers in managing risks is the best available, based on the latest evidence and science.
“Although Great Britain continues to be up there with the safest places in the world to work, these figures highlight the scale of the challenge HSE currently faces in making Britain an even healthier and safer place to work, this includes our role in the response to the pandemic to ensure workplaces are Covid Secure.
“We must continue to drive home the importance of managing risk and promoting behaviours to ensure employers work right so that workers are able to go home healthy and safe at the end of each day.”
The full annual injury and ill-health statistics report can be found on HSE’s website.