WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES AUSTRALIA 2012

Transcription

1 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES AUSTRALIA 2012 OCTOBER 2013

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3 Safe Work Australia WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA 2012 October 2013

4 Creative Commons ISBN [PDF] [DOCX] With the exception of the Safe Work Australia logo and front cover images, this report is licensed by Safe Work Australia under a Creative Commons 3.0 Australia Licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit In essence, you are free to copy, communicate and adapt the work, as long as you attribute the work to Safe Work Australia and abide by the other licensing terms. The report should be attributed as Work-related Traumatic Injury Fatalities, Australia Enquiries regarding the licence and any use of the report are welcome at: Copyright Officer Stakeholder Engagement Safe Work Australia GPO Box 641 Canberra ACT copyrightrequests@swa.gov.au Disclaimer The information provided in this document can only assist you in the most general way. This document does not replace any statutory requirements under any relevant state and territory legislation. Safe Work Australia is not liable for any loss resulting from any action taken or reliance made by you on the information or material contained on this document. Before relying on the material, users should carefully make their own assessment as to its accuracy, currency, completeness and relevance for their purposes, and should obtain any appropriate professional advice relevant to their particular circumstances. The views in this report should not be taken to represent the views of Safe Work Australia unless otherwise expressly stated.

5 Foreword The aim of this report is to determine the number of people who die each year from injuries that arose through work-related activity. This includes fatalities resulting from an injury sustained in the course of a work activity (worker fatality) and as a result of someone else s work activity (bystander fatality). Previous reports have included fatalities that occurred while the worker was commuting to or from work (commuter fatality). However, these fatalities have always been difficult to distinguish from other road fatalities and this project relied heavily on workers compensation data. As fewer jurisdictions are now providing compensation coverage for commuting, the integrity of the commuter fatality collection has diminished and has therefore been ceased. Injury is defined as a condition coded to External Causes of morbidity and mortality and Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10-AM). The scope of this collection includes all persons: who were fatally injured, and whose injuries resulted from work activity or exposures, and whose injuries occurred in an incident that took place in Australian territories or territorial waters. The report includes all persons killed: while working including unpaid volunteers and family workers, persons undertaking work experience and defence force personnel killed within Australian territories or territorial waters or travelling for work (worker fatalities), or as a result of someone else s work activity (bystander fatalities). The collection specifically excludes those who died: of iatrogenic injuries those where the worker died due to medical intervention due to natural causes such as heart attacks and strokes, except where a work-related injury was the direct cause of the heart attack or stroke as a result of diseases, such as cancers due to injuries sustained while working overseas (defence personnel and civilians), or by self-inflicted injuries (suicide). People who died of injuries caused by someone else s work activity while themselves at work are classified as a worker rather than as a bystander. In order to make comparisons with other fatality counts, such as the national road toll, it has been decided to publish results from the Traumatic Injury Fatalities database on a calendar year basis. This report presents data for the 2003 to 2012 calendar years. This iii

6 means that information on work-related fatalities that occurred from 1 January 2003 to 30 June 2003, which were previously not compiled in this series of reports, have now been added to the database. Changes from previous publications may also be evident due to the availability of additional information from finalised coroners reports and additional workers compensation claims.

7 Contents Foreword iii Summary of findings vii Worker fatalities 1 Characteristics by sex 1 Characteristics by age group 2 Involvement of vehicles 3 Mechanism of incident 4 Fatalities due to a vehicle incident 7 Fatalities due to being hit by moving objects 8 Fatalities due to falls from height 9 Fatalities due to being hit by falling objects 9 Characteristics by Industry 10 Characteristics by Occupation 14 State/territory of death 17 Working on farms 21 Bystander fatalities 23 Characteristics by age group 23 Mechanism of incident 24 Explanatory Notes 25 Glossary 31 v

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9 Summary of findings Worker fatalities Injuries at work resulted in the deaths of 223 workers in This is similar to the previous two years and represents a significant fall from the 311 deaths recorded in Over the past 10 years 2596 workers have been killed while working. The 223 fatalities in 2012 equates to a fatality rate of 1.93 deaths per workers. This is the lowest fatality rate since the series began 10 years ago. The highest fatality rate was recorded in 2004 (2.95). Notable characteristics of worker fatalities include: Sex Male workers have a fatality rate 10 times the rate of female workers. In 2012, 213 of the 223 fatalities (96%) involved male workers. Vehicle involvement Across the 10 years of the series, two-thirds of fatalities involved vehicles with half of the vehicle-related incidents occurring on public roads. The 2012 data followed this same pattern with 141 of the 223 fatalities (63%) involving a vehicle. Trucks were the vehicle most often involved in fatalities. In 2012, 40 truck drivers were killed on public roads and 26 workers in cars. Age While workers aged 65 years and over recorded their lowest fatality rate since the series began, their rate of 6.85 deaths per workers is still three times the rate for all workers. Workers aged years recorded the lowest fatality rate in 2012, with 1.15 deaths per workers. How the fatality occurred On average four out of every 10 workers are killed in a vehicle collision. In 2012, 87 workers (39%) died this way, up from 77 in the previous year but still lower than most other years in the series. In 2012, 29 workers (13%) were killed when hit by a moving object. Vehicles were involved in 22 of these incidents. This is similar to most other years in the series. In 2012, 29 workers (13%) were killed when they fell from a height. This is the highest number since 2007 (30). Eight of these workers fell from the roof of a building, the highest number since 2003 (9). In 2012, 26 workers (12%) were killed when hit by a falling object. This is the second highest number in the series behind 2010 when there were 31 deaths. Of these workers, 5 were hit by falling trees and 4 by metal objects. Industry Over the past 10 years, 62% of fatalities occurred within three industries: Transport, postal & warehousing; Agriculture, forestry & fishing; and Construction. The Transport, postal & warehousing industry accounted for the highest number of fatalities (65 29%) in This is the highest number since 2007 (70). Within this industry, the Road freight transport sector recorded deaths per workers, 15 times the all industries rate. The Agriculture, forestry & fishing industry recorded 53 fatalities in 2012, one of the lowest numbers in the series. However this still equates to deaths per workers, nearly seven times the all industries rate. vii

10 The Construction industry recorded 30 fatalities in 2012, the lowest number in the 10 years and a substantial fall from the 42 recorded in the previous year. Occupation In the past 10 years 523 truck drivers have been killed while working, equating to 20% of all fatalities. In 2012, 47 truck drivers were killed, up from 37 recorded in the previous year but considerably lower than the series high of 73 in The 25 farm managers killed in 2012 was the lowest in the series and a considerable improvement on the 34 killed the previous year. There were also 17 farm labourers killed in 2012, which was similar to other years in the series. State and territory of death New South Wales was the location of 83 of the fatalities (37%) in This is considerably higher than the 57 recorded in the previous year. Victoria recorded the most notable fall in the number of fatalities in The 33 fatalities in 2012 was the lowest in the series and a substantial fall on the 45 fatalities recorded the previous year. While the Northern Territory records relatively few fatalities, the lower employment base means that it has recorded the highest fatality rate in most years of the series. Although the rate of 3.84 deaths per workers in 2012 was the lowest in the series, it was still twice the national rate. Bystander fatalities The actions of a work or a fault in a workplace resulted in the deaths of 63 members of the public in This is the highest number since 2007 when 71 members of the public were killed. As bystander fatalities are difficult to identify this decrease may not represent an improvement in the risk to members of the public. A vehicle collision on a public road accounted for 50 (79%) of the 2012 fatalities. This is higher than the proportion this type of incident represents in the full time series (60%). Over the past ten years 37% of bystanders have been killed in a vehicle crash with a truck. Most of these incidents involved a bystander in a car (22% of all bystander fatalities).

11 Worker fatalities 223 workers were killed in 2012 Injuries at work resulted in the deaths of 223 workers in This is similar to the previous two years, which have been the lowest since the series began in The highest number of work-related injury fatalities was recorded in 2007 when there were 311 deaths. As there was a greater percentage rise in employment than in fatalities the fatality rate in 2012 decreased. Figure 1 shows that the fatality rate of 1.93 deaths per workers is the lowest rate since the series began. Figure 1: Worker fatalities: number of fatalities and fatality rate, 2003 to Number of fatalities Number Fatality rate Deaths per workers Characteristics by sex Male workers have a fatality rate ten times higher than female workers Deaths per workers In 2012, 213 of the 223 (96%) workers killed were men. The 10 fatalities involving female workers in 2012 was the lowest in the time series with the highest (24) in Figure 2 shows that the fatality rate for male workers has declined over the 10 years from 4.55 deaths per workers in 2003 to 3.39 in The 2012 rate is the second lowest in the series behind 2011 when it was Due to the small number of fatalities for females in 2012, the fatality rate for female workers (0.19 deaths per workers) was the lowest in the series. Over the series, the fatality rate of male workers has been between 10 and 13 times the rate of female workers. The exception is 2012 when the male rate was nearly 18 times greater than the female fatality rate. Figure 2: Worker fatalities: fatality rate by sex, 2003 to Males Females WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

12 Characteristics by age group Fewer older workers but more younger workers were killed in 2012 Table 1 shows the distribution of fatalities by age group and sex. For males, the age profile in 2012 was quite different to the previous year with a greater number of young worker but fewer older workers (those aged 65 years and over) killed. The 27 deaths of male workers under the age of 25 is the highest in four years while the 25 deaths of workers aged 65 years and over is the lowest number since Due to the relatively small number of fatalities for females it is difficult to discern a pattern by age except by using the full time series. The 10 year series shows a similar pattern to males except for a much greater proportion of fatalities in the years age group (23% of female fatalities compared with 16% for males) and a lower proportion for the years age group (16% for females compared with 21% for males). Table 1: Worker fatalities: number by age group and sex, 2003 to 2012 Years Less than 25 Age group (years) Male workers 65 & over Total Total Male Percentage 10% 16% 21% 22% 19% 11% 100% Female workers Total Female Percentage 11% 23% 16% 23% 20% 8% 100% The oldest workers continue to have the highest fatality rate Although the 65 years and over age group has a considerably higher fatality rate than the other age groups, its rate has fallen substantially over the past ten years. Figure 3 shows that the fatality rate for this oldest age group of 6.85 deaths per workers in 2012 is the lowest in the series. While the gap between the oldest age group and the other age groups is now at its narrowest, it still remains three to six times higher than the other age groups SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA

13 The only other age group to record a fall in fatality rate in 2012 was the years age group. However, its rate of 2.08 deaths per workers remains above the rate it recorded in 2010 (1.83). Figure 3: Worker fatalities: fatality rate by age group, 2003 to Deaths per workers Less than & over Involvement of vehicles Vehicles were involved in two-thirds of worker fatalities Over the 10 years from 2003 to 2012 one-third of worker fatalities arose from injuries sustained in a vehicle incident on a public road (Traffic incident), one-third in other vehicle incidents that did not occur on a public road (Non-traffic incident) and the remaining one-third did not involve a vehicle. Table 2 shows that at different points in time each of these categories have recorded the highest number of fatalities and that falls in the numbers have not occurred concurrently. The Glossary provides more details on these terms. Table 2: Worker fatalities: number by vehicle involvement, 2003 to 2012 Type of incident Total % of all fatalities Vehicle involved % Traffic incident % Vehicle incident (crash) Being hit by moving objects % % Other incident % Non-traffic incident % Vehicle incident (crash) Being hit by moving objects Rollover of non-road vehicle Being trapped by vehicle % % % % Other incident % No vehicle involved % Total % WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

14 Mechanism of incident Two out of every five workers killed died in a vehicle crash There was a major increase in the number of Traffic incident fatalities in 2012 compared with the previous years. Traffic incident fatalities rose to 71 from 57 although this number remains significantly below most other years of the series. Workers in vehicles accounted for all but 3 of the fatalities. The remaining 3 were pedestrians who were hit by vehicles. Occupants of trucks accounted for the majority of the Traffic incident fatalities (40) with car occupants accounting for 26 fatalities. Relative to the previous year, the 2012 Traffic incident fatalities include 11 more truck driver fatalities and 3 more car driver fatalities. Of the 70 Non-traffic vehicle incident fatalities in 2012, 16 were truck occupants, 13 were in aircraft and 16 were pedestrian workers not associated with the vehicle that hit them. These pedestrian workers were mainly hit by loaders (4), excavators (3) and trucks (3). Workers working in or around trucks accounted for 76 (34%) of the fatalities in Over the 10 years of the series trucks were involved in 30% of fatalities. The most common mechanism of fatality in 2012 was a vehicle crash where the occupant of the vehicle is killed (Vehicle incident). Vehicle incident resulted in 87 worker fatalities (39% of worker fatalities) in This is the highest number in three years. Over the 10 years of the series Vehicle incident accounted for 41% of fatalities. In addition there were 8 workers killed in 2012 when their non-road vehicle rolled on a property or business premises. Rollover of non-road vehicle accounted for 4% of fatalities in the 10 years. Table 3 shows the number of fatalities for each year of the series by the mechanism of incident. These data show that the number of Vehicle incident fatalities has fallen dramatically in recent years with the highest number recorded in 2007 when 131 workers were killed. Being hit by moving objects and Falls from a height each accounted for 29 fatalities or 13% of fatalities in This proportion is slightly higher than the proportions these mechanisms accounted for over the 10 years of the series (12% and 11% respectively). The time series data show there has been no improvement in the number of deaths each year due to these mechanisms. Being hit by falling objects accounted for 26 fatalities or 12% of fatalities in The proportion in 2012 is notably higher than the 9% of fatalities this mechanism has accounted for over the 10 years of the series. The time series data show these four mechanisms accounted for the majority of work-related fatalities in all years of the series (between 65% and 77% in each year of the series). In comparison to previous years, the 2012 fatalities included many fewer fatalities due to Being trapped between stationary and moving objects (7 compared with an average of 15 for the previous years) and Contact with electricity (6 compared with an average of 13 for the previous years) SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA

15 Table 3: Worker fatalities: number by mechanism of incident, 2003 to 2012 Mechanism of incident Total % of 2012 fatalities % of all fatalities Vehicle incident % 41% Being hit by moving objects % 12% Falls from a height % 11% Being hit by falling objects % 9% Being trapped between stationary & moving objects % 5% Contact with electricity % 5% Rollover of non-road vehicle % 4% Being trapped by moving machinery % 3% Being assaulted by a person or persons % 2% Drowning % 2% Being hit by an animal % 1% Explosion % 1% Falls on the same level % 1% Contact with hot objects % 1% Single contact with chemical or substance % 1% Slide or cave-in % 1% Being bitten by an animal % 1% Exposure to environmental heat % 0% Hitting moving objects % 0% Hitting stationary objects % 0% Insect & spider bites & stings % 0% Other mechanisms of injury % 0% Total % 100% WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

16 Breakdown agency At least one out of every five fatalities was due to the actions of a truck 6... SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA The Breakdown agency identifies the object, substance or circumstance principally involved at the point at which things started to go wrong. Table 4 shows that the Breakdown agency of Mobile plant & transport accounted for 62% of fatalities over the 10 years. Within this group Trucks, semi-trailers, lorries were the biggest contributor accounting for 23% of all fatalities. This was followed by Cars, station wagons, vans, utilities with 14% and Tractors with 5%. The second biggest group was Machinery & fixed plant, which accounted for 10% of fatalities. This group includes Forklift trucks and Cranes. Environmental agencies also accounted for 10% of fatalities. This group includes the built environment and the natural environment in which the worker is employed. Table 4: Worker fatalities: number and proportion by mechanism of incident, 2003 to 2012 combined Breakdown agency Number of fatalities % of fatalities Mobile plant & transport % Road transport % Trucks, semi-trailers, lorries % Cars, station wagons, vans, utilities % Motorbikes 35 1% Air transport 161 6% Self-propelled plant 101 4% Front-end loaders & other loading plant 32 1% Excavators, backhoes, other digging plant 25 1% Other mobile plant 159 6% Tractors 120 5% Water transport 55 2% Other transport 46 2% Quad bikes 39 2% Machinery & fixed plant % Conveyors & lifting plant 154 6% Forklift trucks 50 2% Power hoists 44 2% Cranes 38 1% Electrical installations 54 2% Environmental agencies % Buildings & other structures 97 4% Roof 48 2% Buildings under construction or demolition 20 1% Vegetation 53 2% Non-powered handtools, appliances & equipment 160 6% Ladders, mobile ramp &,stairways & scaffolding 71 3% Ladders 49 2% Scaffolding 19 1% Animal, human & biological agencies 124 5% Human agencies 49 2% Horses, donkeys, mules 31 1% Cows, steers, cattle, bulls, buffalo 17 1% Powered equipment, tools & appliances 85 3% Materials & substances 68 3% Chemicals & chemical products 26 1% Total (including unknown agency) %

17 Fatalities due to a vehicle incident Single vehicle crashes accounted for onequarter of fatalities Table 5 shows that of the 1055 workers who died in a Vehicle incident between 2003 and 2012, two-thirds involved a single vehicle (27% of all worker fatalities). Trucks were involved in just under half of the single vehicle incidents (313 fatalities) followed by aircraft (150) and cars (144). The number of workers killed in a single vehicle incident has been consistently lower in the last three years with 55 fatalities in 2012 compared to a high of 91 in In contrast, the number of workers killed in multi-vehicle incidents has not shown consistent improvement. There were 32 fatalities from multi-vehicle incidents in 2012, which is a notable rise from the 24 recorded in 2011 but is still below the series high of 47 recorded in both 2004 and The lower number of single vehicle incidents in recent years can be attributed to a major fall in the number of workers killed in car crashes. There were 6 single vehicle car crash fatalities recorded in 2012 compared to a series high of 27 in While single vehicle truck crash fatalities were relatively low in 2010 (20) and 2011 (21), the 30 fatalities recorded in 2012 is similar to other years in the series. Trucks are also prominent in multi-vehicle incidents. In the 10 years 112 workers died when two trucks collided, 86 workers in cars died in incidents with trucks and a further 26 workers in trucks died in incidents with cars. In total 462 occupants of trucks were killed in a Vehicle incident in the 10 years from 2003 to 2012 which amounts to 18% of all worker fatalities. Over this same period 308 workers (or 12% of all worker fatalities) were killed in car crashes. Table 5: Worker fatalities due to Vehicle incident: number by breakdown agency, 2003 to 2012 Type of incident Total Single vehicle incident % of all fatalities % Truck % Aircraft % Car % Motorbike % Watercraft % Tractor % Quad bike % Other single vehicle incident Multi-vehicle incident % % Two trucks % Car occupant killed in incident with truck % Two cars % Truck occupant killed in incident with car % Motorbike & other vehicle % Tractor & other vehicle Other multivehicle incident % % Total % WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

18 Fatalities due to being hit by moving objects Around 12 workers each year are hit and killed by trucks and cars Over the 10 year period from 2003 to 2012, 312 workers died as a result of Being hit by moving objects, which amounted to 12% of all worker fatalities. Table 6 shows that two-thirds (118 fatalities) of these incidents involved Mobile plant & transport particularly trucks and cars. The 29 fatalities recorded in 2012 resulting from Being hit by moving objects is similar to other years, although they are a notable increase from the series low of 21 fatalities in Of these 29 fatalities, 26 (90%) involved being hit by Mobile plant & transport, which is substantially higher than the series average (68%). In 2012 there were more fatalities due to being hit by a truck, tractor or other selfpropelled plant such as loaders and fewer fatalities in the other Breakdown agency groups. Many of the Mobile plant & transport fatalities involved the worker being hit by their own vehicle after having temporarily alighted to unload their cargo or open a gate. Recent years have seen a fall in the number of workers who were hit by a car. There were 2 such fatalities recorded in 2012, which is the lowest number in the series and considerably below the series high of 12 fatalities in In addition to being hit by a vehicle, there were 13 workers killed over the 10 years when they were hit by Vehicle wheels and tyres. All but 1 of these involved the worker undertaking maintenance activities on the tyres. There were no incidents like this in Over the 10 year period 14 workers died from a gunshot wound while working. Of these, 10 were farmers. Eight of the farmers accidently shot themselves while eradicating vermin from their properties or destroying an animal. Many of these incidents involved riding in a vehicle or attempting to climb a fence with a loaded firearm. One worker died in this type of circumstance in Table 6: Worker fatalities due to Being hit by moving objects: number by breakdown agency, 2003 to 2012 Breakdown agency Total Mobile plant & transport Trucks, semi-trailers, lorries Cars, station wagons, vans, utilities Self-propelled plant Tractors, agricultural or otherwise Powered equipment, tools & appliances Weapons Non-powered handtools, appliances & equipment Vehicle wheels and tyres Machinery & (mainly) fixed plant Conveyors & lifting plant Other Total SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA

19 Fatalities due to falls from height Falls commonly involved roofs and ladders Over the 10 year period from 2003 to 2012, 274 workers died following Falls from a height, which amounted to 11% of all worker fatalities. In 2012, 29 workers died due to this mechanism, which is a large increase on the previous year (21) and the third highest number in the series behind 39 in 2006 and 30 in The increase is a result of more fatalities due to Environmental agencies (17), particularly falls from a Roof, which accounted for 8 fatalities in 2012, nearly twice the yearly average. Table 7 shows that over the past 10 years Falls from a height most commonly involved falls from Roof and falls from Ladders with both accounting for 46 fatalities. Interestingly, while there were more falls from roofs in 2012 than most other years there was only 1 fall from a ladder in 2012, the lowest number in the series. There were also no falls from Horses, donkeys, mules in 2012 when all other years recorded between 1 and 4 deaths. Table 7: Worker fatalities due to Falls from a height: number by breakdown agency, 2003 to 2012 Breakdown agency Total Environmental agencies Roof Buildings under construction or demolition Non-powered handtools, appliances and equipment Ladders Scaffolding Mobile plant and transport Trucks, seim-trailers & lorries Machinery and (mainly) fixed plant Elevating work platforms Animal, human and biological agencies Horses, donkeys, mules Total Fatalities due to being hit by falling objects Over the 10 year period from 2003 to 2012, 227 workers died due to Being hit by falling objects, which amounted to 9% of all worker fatalities. This mechanism claimed the lives of 26 workers in 2012, which is similar to previous years. Table 8 provides more detail on the object that hit the worker. Over the 10 years, 56 workers were killed by falling Vegetation, mainly trees. This is one-quarter of all workers who died following Being hit by falling objects. Similar to most other years, except 2011 when 11 people were killed, falling Vegetation killed 5 workers in All of these workers were felling trees at the time. Being hit by falling metal objects claimed the lives of 4 workers in 2012 and 22 workers over the 10 years. WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

20 Table 8: Worker fatalities due to Being hit by falling objects: number by breakdown agency, 2003 to 2012 Agency Total Environmental agencies Vegetation Buildings & other structures Materials and substances Ferrous & non-ferrous metal Sawn or dressed timber Mobile plant and transport Road transport Self-propelled plant Non-powered handtools, appliances and equipment Fastening, packing & packaging equipment Furniture & fittings Machinery & (mainly) fixed plant Conveyors & lifting plant Other Total Characteristics by Industry Two-thirds of fatalities occurred in the transport, agriculture and construction sectors In 2012, 29% (65 fatalities) of the workers who died were employed in the Transport, postal & warehousing industry. A further 24% (53) were employed in the Agriculture, forestry & fishing industry and 13% (30) were employed in the Construction industry. Together these three industries accounted for 66% of all worker fatalities in Figure 4 shows that over the past 10 years these three industries have together accounted for 62% of all worker fatalities. Figure 4: Worker fatalities: proportion by industry of employer, all years (2003 to 2012 combined) and 2012 Transport, postal & warehousing Agriculture, forestry & fishing Construction Manufacturing Public administration & safety Mining Professional, scientific & technical services Retail trade Wholesale trade Administrative & support services Electricity, gas, water & waste services Arts & recreation services Education & training Health care & social assistance Information media & telecommunications Rental, hiring & real estate services Other services Accommodation & food services Financial & insurance services 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% Proportion of worker fatalities 2012 All years SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA

21 The Agriculture forestry and fishing industry had a fatality rate eight times the national rate The Road freight transport sector had a fatality rate 15 times the national rate With deaths per workers, the Agriculture, forestry & fishing industry recorded the highest fatality rate in This is eight times the national fatality rate of Within this industry, the Agriculture sector accounted for 37 of the 53 worker fatalities in 2012 and recorded a fatality rate of deaths per workers, slightly below the rate for the industry as a whole. This is due to other sectors of the industry such as forestry, fishing and aquaculture recording much higher fatality rates. After a couple of years with relatively low numbers of fatalities, the Transport, postal & warehousing industry recorded 65 fatalities in 2012, a number similar to most other years in the series. The Transport, postal & warehousing industry recorded a fatality rate of deaths per workers in While this is one of the lowest in the series (due to an increase in employment), it is still six times the national rate. The Road freight transport sector accounted for one-quarter of workers in the Transport, postal & warehousing industry in 2012 but accounted for 71% (46) of the fatalities. This number of fatalities equates to a fatality rate of deaths per workers, which is 15 times the all industries rate and two and a half times the rate for the industry as a whole. While the Construction industry recorded the third highest number of fatalities (30), the Electricity, gas, water & waste services industry recorded the third highest fatality rate with 3.29 deaths per workers. There were 5 fatalities recorded in this industry in 2012, which is the highest number since 2006 when 9 deaths were recorded. Of these, 4 involved being hit by a vehicle. The Construction industry recorded 30 fatalities in 2012, its lowest number in the 10 years and substantially lower than the 42 recorded in the previous year. This number of fatalities equates to 3.00 deaths per workers, which is the fourth highest fatality rate of all the industries. The Mining industry recorded 7 fatalities in 2012 compared with 5 in the previous year. This corresponds to a fatality rate of 2.64 deaths per workers. This rate is the second lowest in the series and considerably below the series high of deaths per workers in 2003 when 11 workers were killed. Employment in the Mining industry has nearly tripled over this 10 year period. Because fatality rates are sensitive to the number of workers employed in each industry, fatality rates are liable to show volatility in those industries that employ the fewest workers even when small variations in the number of fatalities are recorded. Therefore, the actual number of fatalities should also be considered when interpreting the fatality rates in Table 9. WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

22 Table 9: Worker fatalities: number and fatality rate by industry of employer, 2003 to 2012 Industry of employer Number of worker fatalities Transport, postal & warehousing Road freight transport Agriculture, forestry & fishing Agriculture Construction Manufacturing Public administration & safety Mining a Retail trade Professional, scientific & technical services Administrative & support services Wholesale trade Electricity, gas, water & waste services Arts & recreation services Education & training Health care & social assistance Information media & telecommunications Other services Rental, hiring & real estate services Accommodation & food services Financial & insurance services All industries (incl unknown) Fatality rate (deaths per workers) Transport, postal & warehousing Road freight transport Agriculture, forestry & fishing Agriculture Construction Manufacturing Public administration & safety Mining a Retail trade Professional, scientific & technical services Administrative & support services Wholesale trade Electricity, gas, water & waste services* Arts & recreation services* Education & training* Health care & social assistance* Information media & telecommunications* Other services* Rental, hiring & real estate services* Accommodation & food services* Financial & insurance services* All industries (incl unknown) * Movements in fatality rates in industries where 5 or fewer fatalities occurred in most years should be viewed with caution. a Mining fatalities include those that occur in coal and metal ore mining, oil and gas extraction, sand and gravel quarrying, exploration and support services SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA

23 Table 10 shows the most common mechanisms of incident for the four industries with the highest numbers of fatalities. These data show quite different patterns for each industry compared with the all industries average. Vehicle incident accounted for most (72%) of the fatalities in the Transport, postal & warehousing industry. This is nearly twice the proportion that this mechanism represents of all worker fatalities but is not unexpected as this industry includes long and short distance freight and passenger transport. Within the Agriculture, forestry & fishing industry one-third (32%) of fatalities were due to Vehicle incident. An additional 12% of fatalities were attributed to Rollover of non-road vehicle and these typically involved tractors and quad bikes. This industry has higher proportions of fatalities due to Hit or bitten by animal (5%) and Drowning (4%) than the other industries. Falls from a height dominated fatalities in the Construction industry. This mechanism accounted for 27% of fatalities, which is nearly three times the proportion this mechanism represents of all worker fatalities. Contact with electricity accounted for a further 15% of fatalities in this industry. This proportion is also three times the proportion this mechanism represents of all worker fatalities. The proportion of fatalities due to Vehicle incident (18%) was relatively low. Of the four industries shown in Table 10, the mechanism profile of the Manufacturing industry most closely resembled the all industry profile. However, one key difference was that the proportion of fatalities due to a Vehicle incident was relatively low (22% compared with 41% nationally). In the Manufacturing industry there is a greater likelihood of being Hit by falling object, Trapped by objects (which includes Being trapped between stationary & moving objects and Being trapped by moving machinery or equipment) or Being hit by moving objects than in the other three industries. All three of these mechanisms each accounted for 17% of fatalities compared with 9% 12% in the all industries profile. Table 10: Worker fatalities: percentage by mechanism of incident and selected industries, 2003 to 2012 combined Mechanism Agriculture, forestry & fishing Selected industry Construction Manufacturing Transport, postal & warehousing All industries Vehicle incident 32% 18% 22% 72% 41% Rollover of non-road vehicle 12% 2% 2% 1% 5% Being hit by moving object 14% 13% 17% 8% 12% Falls from a height 5% 27% 11% 3% 10% Hit by falling object 10% 11% 17% 4% 9% Trapped by objects 9% 8% 17% 6% 9% Contact with electricity 3% 15% 4% 1% 5% Drowning 4% 0% 0% 0% 2% Hit or bitten by animal 5% 0% 0% 0% 2% Other mechanisms 5% 6% 10% 4% 6% Total 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

24 Characteristics by Occupation One third of all workers killed were machinery operators or drivers In 2012, 35% (79 fatalities) of the workers killed were employed as Machinery operators & drivers. Labourers accounted for a further 22% (48 fatalities) of fatalities followed by Managers (15% 34 fatalities) and Technicians & trades workers (13% 29 fatalities). Figure 5 shows that the pattern for 2012 is broadly similar to the combined pattern for all 10 years. Figure 5: Worker fatalities: proportion of fatalities by occupation, All years (2003 to 2012 combined) and 2012 Occupation Machinery operators & drivers Labourers Managers Technicians & trades workers Professionals Community & personal service workers Sales workers Clerical & administrative workers 2012 All years 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% Percentage of Worker fatalities Table 11 provides a breakdown of the number of fatalities in each occupation group over time and the corresponding fatality rates. These data show that while the overall number of fatalities increased by only 2 from the previous year there were some major shifts across the occupation groups. The number of fatalities among Machinery operators & drivers increased from 60 to 79 and among Labourers from 40 to 48. This was offset by falls among Managers (40 down to 34), Technicians & trades workers (42 down to 29) and Professionals (25 down to 18). The pattern for 2012 is similar to most previous years of the series with the 2011 pattern being unusual. Workers who operate machinery or equipment have a fatality rate five times the national rate The highest fatality rate at the occupation major level in 2012 was recorded by Machinery operators & drivers. Their rate of deaths per workers was five times the national rate. Within this occupation group Road & rail drivers recorded 62 fatalities in 2012, a substantial increase on the previous two years but still lower than most other years in the series. This number of fatalities equates to a fatality rate of deaths per workers, 10 times the national rate and twice the rate for the occupation group. At a finer level of the classification, Truck drivers accounted for 47 fatalities in 2012 up from 37 in 2011 but still considerably below the 73 fatalities involving truck drivers in In the 10 years of the series 519 truck drivers have died while working. The Labourers occupation group recorded the second highest fatality rate, 4.12 deaths per workers, twice the national rate. Within this occupation, Farm, forestry & garden workers recorded 17 fatalities in 2012 equating to deaths per workers, nearly eight times the national rate. This number of deaths is similar to previous years SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA

25 In addition, 25 Farmers & farm managers were killed at work in 2012, which is the lowest number of deaths since 2008 when there were 23. The fatality rate for this occupation was deaths per workers, seven times the overall rate. Table 11: Worker fatalities: number and fatality rate by occupation, 2003 to 2012 Occupation Number of worker fatalities Machinery operators & drivers Road & rail drivers Labourers Farm, forestry & garden workers Construction & mining labourers Managers Farmers & farm managers Technicians & trades workers Construction trades workers Automotive & engineering trades workers Professionals Design, engineering, science & transport professionals Community & personal service workers Sales workers Clerical & administrative workers Total all occupations Fatality rate (deaths per workers) Machinery operators & drivers Road & rail drivers Labourers Farm, forestry & garden workers Construction & mining labourers Managers Farmers & farm managers Technicians & trades workers Construction trades workers Automotive & engineering trades workers Professionals Design, engineering, science & transport professionals Community & personal service workers Sales workers Clerical & administrative workers All occupations WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, AUSTRALIA

26 On average 50 truck drivers are killed each year while working Table 12 shows the number of fatalities for the lowest level of the occupation classification to which the fatalities have been coded. These data show that the highest number of fatalities over the ten years was recorded by Truck drivers with 523 fatalities, which is 20% of all worker fatalities. This was followed by Livestock farmers (139), Mixed crop & livestock farmers (104) and Air transport professionals (103). The detailed occupation data should be viewed with caution due to the limited information available in the data sources. Table 12: Worker fatalities: number by detailed occupation, 2003 to 2012 Detailed occupation Total Truck drivers Livestock farmers Mixed crop & livestock farmers Air transport professionals Crop farm workers Delivery drivers Electricians Livestock farm workers Earth moving plant operators Building & plumbing labourers Crop farmers Deck & fishing hands Table 13 shows the most common mechanisms of incident for the five occupations with the highest total numbers of fatalities over the 2003 to 2012 period. These data show quite different patterns. Vehicle incident is the dominant mechanism of incident for both Machinery operators & drivers and Professionals accounting for 61% and 74% of fatalities respectively in these occupations compared with 41% nationally. This is not unexpected for Machinery operators & drivers because the occupation group includes truck and delivery drivers. For Professionals, 107 of the 215 (50%) fatalities in the 10 year period involved a plane crash with 98 of the workers being the pilot of the plane. Falls from a height accounted for one quarter of Technicians & trades worker fatalities, which is more than twice the proportion that this mechanism represents of all worker fatalities. More than half of the workers in this occupation group who died from a fall were Construction trades workers. Similarly Contact with electricity accounted for 17% of fatalities in this occupation group which is more than three times the national proportion (5%). Not surprisingly 34 of the 71 workers (48%) in this occupation group who died from this mechanism were electricians. A lower proportion of Labourer fatalities were the result of a Vehicle incident (21%) compared to the national proportions. Countering this were higher proportions of Labourer fatalities due to Being hit by moving object (15%), Falls from a height (15%) and Hit by falling object (15%) SAFE WORK AUSTRALIA