I just read an article today about Workplace Injury, Illness and Fatality and I was shocked with what I read – especially the point that there were 67 fatalities in the workplace last year and 31 in 2008 to date. Some of the key points from the report were;
• The number of work-related deaths in 2007 was 67. This compares to 51 in 2006 and 74 in 2005.
• The agriculture sector had the highest fatality rate at 8.3 fatalities per 100,000 workers.
• Of the injuries reported to the Authority in 2007, approximately 14% involved non-Irish national workers.
• 13,631 workplace inspections were carried in 2007 and enforcement action was necessary in 12% of those workplaces.
• Manual handling continues to trigger approximately 1/3 of all reported incidents with ‘slip, trip and fall’ incidents the next
It is essential that health and safety is at the top of the agenda within workplaces. Investment in H&S for workers will save money in the long run for organisations. Hopefully the above reading will highligh this.
