Sixty-six people were reported killed at work during 1998, a 40 per cent increase on 1997, according to figures issued by the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) yesterday.
The highest number of deaths, 27, was in the farming sector. There were 22 in the construction industry and six in the fishing industry. Manufacturing accounted for two deaths.
Of the 66 people killed, 31 were self-employed.
The HSA pointed out that the figures for the self-employed indicated that it was difficult for the authority to send a message to people about "the duty of care to themselves".
The figures were just the tip of the iceberg in terms of the total number of accidents and occasions of ill-health at work, according to the director-general of the HSA, Mr Tom Walsh.
He described the 27 deaths in the farming industry, including six children, as completely unacceptable. The causes of the farm deaths were the obvious ones, he said, "for example, eight deaths were from transport equipment, five from falling objects, three deaths caused by animals and three from machinery".
Mr Walsh said the authority would continue its random inspections, which he acknowledged would reach only a limited number of farms. The HSA's view was that farm bodies such as Teagasc should make a renewed effort to advise farmers on safety.
He said the authority welcomed the recent proposals from the Minister for the Marine, Dr Woods, to improve safety in the fishing sector.
A total of 17 deaths occurred in the mainstream construction sector, of which eight resulted from falls from heights. Other fatalities involved collapsing walls, burial in trenches and transport accidents. A further five workers died in construction maintenance work, three from falls and two in accidents involving machinery.
According to Mr Walsh, the fact that there were no deaths in the construction industry in the Dublin area, compared to nine in the previous two years, was "a glimmer of hope".
Next year, he said, the authority would continue to meet representatives of the industries concerned and produce advisory literature for employers and workers.
