Safety Charity Reveals the Extent of Unreported Workplace Harm

The International Labor Organisation (ILO) estimates that nearly three million people worldwide die of work-related accidents and diseases every year. Another 395 million workers sustain non-fatal injuries.  This is the sobering backdrop of the Lloyds Register Foundation’s recent “Engineering Safer Workplaces” report.

The report highlights the extent of workplace harm, reporting, and relevant safety training taking place globally.  Shockingly, the report finds that 18% of employees say they have been harmed at work in the last 2 years

The full report can be accessed here.

Key Findings:

• Since Lloyd’s Register Foundation started the World Risk Poll in 2019, the proportion of the global workforce who report being harmed by their work has stayed high; just under one in five (18%) say they have been harmed in the past two years (in line with 19% in 2019 and 2021).
• The Poll data suggests that globally, around half (49%) of all cases of workplace harm go unreported. Reporting rates are lower among part-time and self-employed workers, with only 49% and 47%, respectively, of those who experienced harm in the past two years telling someone (e.g. a manager or authorities responsible for workplace safety) about the incident, compared with 57% of people employed full-time.
• The Poll data also shows that one way reporting rates can be improved is through the use of regular occupational safety and health (OSH) training. People who have had such training in the past two years are more than three times more likely to report harm at work if it occurs than those who have never had training.
• However, as it stands, almost two thirds (62%) of the global workforce have never received OSH training. Part-time workers – who experience a higher rate of harm – are also around half as likely to have had recent safety training (23%) as those employed full-time (41%).

OIn response to these alarming statistics, Nancy Hey, Director of Evidence and Insight at Lloyd’s Register Foundation, said: “Work and income is an important part of all our lives and for too many that can come with a very high personal cost – as our latest report highlights.

“Low reporting rates, combined with a potential lack of awareness due to low training rates, mean that the true extent of workplace harm is rarely revealed. That’s why safety and health interventions that are both regular and tailored must be a priority for both businesses and policymakers, along with clear reporting tools for all employees – including both part-time and full-time. Special efforts must be made to reach those most at risk and ensure they have a holistic understanding of what safety and health means, as well as an in-depth knowledge of essential procedures in place to keep them safe.”

Martin Cottam, Chair of ISO Technical Committee 283 on Occupational Health and Safety Management, said: “The World Risk Poll results make sobering reading for all those working to encourage better occupational health and safety performance, as they highlight the scale of the ongoing challenge. Amid all the discussion about the plethora of tools and methods available to reduce harm, it is shocking to be confronted with the fact that a majority of the global workforce has never received any occupational safety and health training.”