Data from the HSE notes that employers reported over 4,000 cases of workplace injury in 2023/24, though employee reports provide a figure ten times higher.
Latest statistics released by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) reveal that workplace injuries in the hospitality sector have risen more than 13% in two years.
The HSE, Britain’s workplace health and safety regulator, released provisional statistics last week showing the outcome of employer reports in 2023/24.
A review by Accident At Work Claim UK identified key trends emerging from the recently updated figures.
There were 4,233 reports from the accommodation and food services sector, up 5% from the year before (4,022) and a concerning 13% rise compared with 2021/22 (3,679). In comparison, injuries in the manufacturing and wholesale industries have plummeted by nearly 10% in the same time frame.
According to the Labour Force Survey, which takes data from incidents self-reported by employees, the number is in fact significantly higher.
The survey estimates that there were 44,000 non-fatal incidents. The survey indicates that accommodation and food service workers are the most at-risk across all industries, in relevant terms. The figures project 2,820 incidents per 100,000 workers, or one in every 35 employees being hurt at work.
In comparison, RIDDOR figures suggest that one in 358 employees suffered harm in an incident at work – significantly higher than education (one in 621) but much lower than water supply and waste management (one in 121).
The five top causes of harm as violence numbers rise
1. By far the most common incident that caused an employer to report an injury was a slip, trip or fall on the same level. They occurred 1,486 times, according to the statistics.
2. Industry employees suffered non-fatal harm 471 times while handling, lifting or carrying objects. Additionally, being struck by objects led to 345 reports.
3. 320 employees were reported as having fallen from a height, while 141 reported an incident where they were exposed to, or put in contact with, a harmful substance.
4. Additionally, there were 137 counts of workplace violence that led to an injury report, rising by 37% from last year’s 100 cases.
5. Four of the 138 fatal accidents reported to the HSE came from an accommodation and food services employer. Two were reported killed when struck by a moving vehicle, while another two fell from a height while working.
Workplace accidents cost nation over £21 billion
61,633 incidents that did not result in death were sent to the HSE under the regulations in 2023/24, a slight increase on the 61,406 noted the year before.
However, the Labour Force Survey for 2023/24 states that, according to absences self-reported by employees, there were 604,000 injuries across the British workforce.
The HSE also outlined under its Cost To Britain projection model that 2022/23’s workplace injuries cost the nation an estimated £21.6 billion, accounting for the financial impact on employees, employers and the taxpayer.
Furthermore, the LFS estimates that more than four million days of work were lost in 2023/24 alone due to employee injuries.
The same report states that, according to a three-year average, accommodation and food service workers lose approximately 101,000 days of work per year. This works out as just 0.098 per person, one of the lowest rates of absence among any sector. By way of comparison, an estimated 414,000 days were lost in the transportation and storage sector at a rate of 0.28 per worker.
