The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) published its annual statistics on work-related ill health and workplace injuries in November. The statistics reveal that the number of workers reported to be suffering from work-related ill health during 2023/24 is 1.7 million – which is similar to 2022/23 (1.8 million workers).
The rate of self-reported work-related ill health remains broadly similar to the previous year, although the current rate is still higher than the 2018/19 pre-pandemic level.
Approximately half of those reporting ill-health relate to stress, depression or anxiety, with an estimated 776,000 cases in 2023/24. The current rate of self-reported work-related stress, depression or anxiety is higher than the pre-pandemic level but has decreased from 910,000 in 2022/23.
An estimated 33.7 million working days were lost in 2023/24 due to self-reported work-related ill health or injury.
HSE’s chief executive Sarah Albon said: “This year marks 50 years since the legislation which established HSE was passed. Much has been achieved in that time, including a dramatic reduction of around 85 per cent in the numbers of employee fatal injuries in the workplace.
“Today, Great Britain is one of the safest places in the world to work but these statistics serve as a reminder that there is still room for further improvement, and we remain committed to ensuring people remain safe and healthy wherever work is taking place.”
HSE’s statistics also reveal the impact work-related ill health and workplace injuries are having on Britain’s economic performance.
In 2022/23, the estimated annual costs of workplace injury and new cases of work-related ill health reached £21.6 billion, which is £1.6 billion less compared with 2021/22.
The figures also show that 138 workers were killed in work-related accidents in 2023/24, while 604,000 workers sustained a self-reported non-fatal injury in the workplace during the same period.
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