Key facts about the workforce
This industry grouping covers a wide range of activities, separated into eight groups. The three largest employing groups are:
- Hospitals
- Other social assistance services
- Residential care services
Key facts about injury numbers
There were 1734 injuries across this industry in 2021.
This results in a serious injury frequency rate of 16.7 serious injuries per million hours worked.
The serious injury frequency rate of 16.7 is 59% higher than the state average of 10.5.
The industry’s serious injury frequency rate was 13% higher in 2021 than ten years ago.
Key facts about injured workers
Two in every five serious injuries in the industry occurred in Residential care services.
The occupations with the highest proportion of serious injuries were:
- Personal carers and assistants with 33% of the total and
- Health and welfare support workers with 15% of the total
Key facts about injury causes
The most common causes of injury across the industry in 2021, in order of largest proportion of total injuries, were:
- Body stressing
- Mental stress
- Falls, slips and trips
Priority conditions and causes
The WorkSafe Strategic Plan 2018-2023 identifies six priority causes and conditions, of these four are most relevant to the industry:
- Musculoskeletal disorders
- Hazardous manual tasks
- Slips, trips and falls
- Mental health conditions