Construction and Agriculture deaths top grim table

HSE report shows rise in workplace fatalities

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published its latest set of statistics for workplace deaths, and 2023/24 makes grim reading with numbers once again rising, and construction and agricultural workers being most at risk.

The report, Work-related fatal injuries in Great Britain, 2024, says that: “The construction and agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors continue to account for the greatest number of workers killed in fatal accidents each year, between them accounting for just over half of all fatal injuries to workers in 2023/24.”

Last year 51 construction workers were killed at work, with 23 in agriculture, forestry and fishing. Both these sectors saw a rise in workplace fatalities from the previous year.

In total “138 workers were killed in work-related accidents in Great Britain in 2023/24, an increase of 2 fatalities from 2022/23.”

The figures are particularly stark for the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector which remains markedly higher than the average across all industries, and with its smaller workforce sees deaths “21 times as high as the all industry rate”.

Luke Collins, Unite National Health and Safety Advisor said, “It’s heartbreaking to see more workers are losing their lives within the workplace. Nobody should go to work and be injured or not return home, the fact this has increased in comparison to previous years further demonstrates the catastrophe of the previous hawkish government’s gutting of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

“The HSE need to be empowered to regulate, the current framework imposed on HSE has led them to operate reactively and commercially, a greater focus has been on cost recovery and, in particular income generation through the rebranded ‘Solutions from HSE’ formerly known as the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL). 

“Effectively, their hands are tied, with limited HM Inspectors and competing interests, conducting proactive inspections has become a practice of the past. This has directly translated into more deaths and poor health and safety performance at the workplace.”

Though numbers are rising it should be remembered that unionised workplaces are safer workplaces, with some estimates suggesting that workplaces with active trade unions have half the number of accidents than non unionised ones.

Unite has a well trained army of health and safety reps across the country. Reps who work tirelessly to keep colleagues and fellow members at work safe.

Luke explained: “It is vital workplaces are unionised. There isn’t a greater reason than unionised workplaces are safer than non-unionised workplaces. As the past 14 years has shown, the government is not coming to save workers, workers are!

“That is why Unite continues to invest in the education programmes and have recently launched three advanced health and safety rep courses. It is undeniable the great work health and safety reps undertake at work each day that contributes to making their place of work safer and keeping people alive. 

“The knowledge and expertise of worker involvement is fundamental in building a robust safety culture that works. There are too many tick box initiatives and exercises rolled-out by management. This is largely down to initiatives being ‘tangible’ and all too often related to key performance indicators (KPIs) and cash bonuses. That is not safety!”

As well as Unites core training for Health & Safety Reps and the new Advanced course many regions offer safety updates and short workshops and can even offer bespoke courses for particular workplaces. 

Luke added, “Personally, I encourage any member who has an interest in Health and Safety to put themselves forward as a Health and Safety Rep. Enjoy the courses, improve your knowledge and challenge bad practices within the workplace and help keep people safe.”

For more information about Unite training for Health and Safety Reps go to the Unite Education website. 

Unite also has an ever growing library of Health and Safety Resources available to reps. 

 By Keith Hatch