HSE Health and Safety Statistics 2022-2023: 1.8m cite work-related ill health

Key Statistics and Findings

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in the UK has released comprehensive statistics regarding health and safety for the year 2022-2023. These statistics provide crucial insights into the state of workplace safety and health across various sectors in Great Britain. Altogether, nearly two million workers in Great Britain reported suffering from work-related ill health in 2022-23. Read the key statistics:

Work-Related Ill Health and Injury

• 1.8 million workers suffered from work-related ill health (new or longstanding) in 2022/23. With approximately half of these cases down to stress, depression or anxiety.
• 0.6 million workers sustained a workplace non-fatal injury in the same period.
• 35.2 million working days were lost due to work-related ill health and non-fatal workplace injuries.

Stress, Depression, and Anxiety

• Notably, 0.9 million workers suffered from work-related stress, depression, or anxiety (new or longstanding).
• Work-related stress remains a major concern, accounting for a significant portion of the ill health cases.

Non-Fatal Injuries and Fatalities

• There were 60,645 work-related non-fatal injuries reported by employers.
• Tragically, 135 workers were killed in work-related accidents.

Lung Disease and Mesothelioma

• Annually, around 12,000 lung disease deaths are estimated to be linked to past work exposures.
• There were 2,268 mesothelioma deaths in 2021, with a similar number of lung cancer deaths linked to past asbestos exposures.

Musculoskeletal Disorders

• 0.5 million workers suffered from work-related musculoskeletal disorders.

Economic Impact

• The annual costs of new cases of work-related ill health were £13.1 billion in 2021/22, excluding long latency illnesses like cancer.
• The annual costs of workplace injury stood at £7.7 billion in the same period.
• Combined, these figures amount to an annual cost of £20.7 billion due to workplace injury and new cases of work-related ill health.

Spike in work-related ill health since COVID-19 pandemic

In the recent years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of self-reported work-related ill health had been broadly flat, but the current rate is higher than 2018/19. There were an estimated 875,000 cases of work-related stress, depression or anxiety in 2022/23. The current rate of self-reported work-related stress, depression or anxiety is higher than the pre-pandemic level.

The report highlights the significant impact of work-related injuries and ill health on workers, employers, and society. It also shows the need for continued efforts to prevent and reduce the risks of work-related injuries and ill health, especially in the high-risk industries and occupations.

HSE’s chief executive Sarah Albon says,

"Preventing or tackling work-related stress can provide significant benefits to employees, improving their experience of work and their overall health; and also to employers including increased productivity, decreased absenteeism and reduced staff turnover.”

Further reading

Read the full statistics here. You can find more information on the HSE website here.

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Sources

HSE publishes annual work-related ill health and injury statistics for 2022/23 by HSE, 22nd November, 2023.

Health and safety at work: Summary statistics for Great Britain 2023 by HSE, 22nd November, 2023.

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