Annual statistics for 2023 to 2024 released

HSE has published the latest statistics on work-related health and safety in Great Britain.

The annual work-related health and safety figures for 2023 to 2024 include:

• 1.7 million working people suffering from a work-related illness, of which:
• 776,000 workers are suffering work-related stress, depression or anxiety
• 543,000 workers are suffering from a work-related musculoskeletal disorder
• 138 workers killed in work-related accidents
• 33.7 million working days lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury
• £21.6 billion estimated cost of injuries and ill health from current working conditions (2022 to 2023) 

HSE's statistics webpages have full information on this year's figures, including different types of work-related ill health and different industry sectors. You can also view our annual infographic-style summary statistics booklet.

For more details, and quotes from HSE's Chief Executive Sarah Albon, read our press release: HSE publishes annual work-related ill health and injury statistics for 2023 to 2024

Food company fined £1.28m after worker crushed to death

The worker, who had been moving strip curtains in a loading bay, was killed after being struck by a lorry as it reversed into the bay.

HSE's investigation found a host of failings by the company, which included:

• they had not assessed the risks associated with the temporarily installed curtains
• there was no safe system of work to move the curtains out of the way when lorries reversed into the loading bay
• the site staff had not been provided with training or instructions on how to move the curtains and had devised their own methods

Read more in our press release: food company fined £1.28m after employee crushed to death by lorry.

You can visit our news centre for more on recent enforcement cases, which include:

• company fined after worker killed by telehandler
• fine for council after member of public is killed by falling tree
  
  

Guidance on working in cold and wintry weather

Make sure you protect workers during low temperatures and wintry conditions.

As winter starts to take hold, you can find helpful advice from HSE on keeping people as comfortable as possible when working in the cold.

Our website offers information and guidance including:

• advice on how to protect workers in low temperatures
• clarity on what the law says about temperature in the workplace
• how you can assess the risks and put controls in place to protect workers

In addition, our workplace temperature checklist will help you carry out a basic risk assessment.

Lighting at work guidance

The quicker and easier it is to see a hazard, the more easily it is avoided.

Lighting at work is very important to the health and safety of everyone using the workplace.

HSE's publication offers guidance on:

• assessment and management of risks attributable to poor lighting
• what constitutes good practice
• the minimum recommended levels of lighting

You can download a free copy of the guidance: Lighting at work (HSG38).

HSE as a market surveillance authority for workplace products

HSE monitors and enforces legal requirements on the safety of most products used in the workplace, including any risks to health.

HSE has a duty to notify the Secretary of State about unsafe or non-compliant products and of the measures taken and communicated by an economic operator.   

Products notified to the HSE Product Safety and Market Surveillance Unit that present a serious or high risk to the health and safety of the user, and recalled products are published on GOV.UK's product safety alerts, reports and recalls webpage.    

Recent examples of products notified are:

Include work-related stress in your risk assessments

Many people still do not realise that it’s a legal duty to include work-related stress in risk assessments.

You can help change that by supporting HSE’s Working Minds campaign, which marks its third anniversary this month.