Rise in work-related fatality rate as 43 killed, mainly in agriculture and construction 

Cork saw the highest number of work-related fatalities last year with seven, followed by Dublin and Kerry with five each, HSA report shows

Agriculture, forestry, and fishing accounted for 20 of the 43 work-related fatalities in 2023. 

The rate of fatal work-related incidents increased during 2023 as 43 people — the vast majority of them employed in agriculture and construction activities — lost their lives, a new report by the Health and Safety Authority has found.

According to the HSA’s annual report for 2023, the rate of fatal work-related accidents per 100,000 people has gone up from 1.1 in 2022 to 1.6 last year. 

Of those who died in 2023, 20 were working in agriculture, forestry, and fishing businesses, while 11 were working in construction. 

Chief executive of the HSA Conor O’Brien said the figures were higher last year as “2022 had been the lowest year on record for work-related fatalities since the establishment of the authority in 1989”.

“Overall, we welcome the decrease in work-related fatalities rates in the past 10 years, from the rate of 2.8 per 100,000 workers in 2014 to 1.6 in 2023,” he said.

Mr O’Brien said while progress is being made in improving workplace safety in recent years, “sadly we are seeing a persistent trend over many years now in both the agriculture and construction sectors, where workers continue to lose their lives”.

We’re urging all employers, but particularly the self-employed, to make health and safety a top priority as you go to work each day.

During the year, the HSA conducted just shy of 10,000 proactive and over 460 reactive inspections of businesses operating across all economic sectors. There were also 225 investigations completed after the HSA received incident reports.

'We are seeing a persistent trend over many years now in both the agriculture and construction sectors, where workers continue to lose their lives,' said HSA chief Conor O’Brien.

In total, the HSA undertook 83 investigations into fatal accidents, concluding that 43 of them were work-related. Cork saw the highest number of work-related fatalities last year with seven, followed by Dublin and Kerry with five each.

During 2023, the HSA concluded 19 prosecutions, resulting in fines totalling €1,377,500.

The largest fine recorded in 2023 was for €750,000 and was handed down in June at the Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. It related to an incident on September 23, 2019, where the accused failed to ensure that in the course of the work being carried out, individuals at the place of work were not exposed to risks to their safety, health, and welfare.

In particular, the control measures put in place in respect of a hazard of a fragile surface on the floor of the plant room at the premises, which were supposed to stop people from accessing the fragile surface, were inappropriate and unsafe. As a result, a person suffered an injury and died.

Prison sentences

Prison sentences were handed down in two of the prosecutions. One person received a 12-month sentence after pleading guilty to five charges relating to an incident from July 2016, while another received nine months for an incident in December of the same year.

• According to the HSA, a total of 1,348 farm inspections were carried out during the year, of which almost half were carried out during targeted inspection campaigns. A total of 89 enforcements were issued;
• The authority carried out 389 inspections across the construction sector. In turn it issued 45 prohibition notices/improvement notices, mostly in relation to working at height;
• In the retail sector, the HSA carried out 198 inspections, with more than 100 of these focused on the five major grocery retailers. A total of 190 enforcement notices were issued;
• However, the sector with the highest number of enforcements was the health and social care sector. In total, 622 proactive and reactive inspections were carried out, focusing on safety management systems and a range of hazards specific to this sector. These specific hazards included work-related violence and aggression, covid-19, and patient and manual handling.

Nearly one third of these inspections were to address work-related violence and aggression.

Inspections were carried out in a variety of work settings, including hospitals, nursing homes, residential care, and primary and community care services.

A total of 499 enforcements were issued, which included 28 improvement notices.

In addition, the HSA’s market surveillance activities for chemical and industrial products saw 917 chemical products assessed, along with 307 industrial products. A total of 182 non-compliant chemical products were removed from the Irish market as a result of its activities.