It is official – the boom was bad for the health and safety of workers. However, the recession was also bad for workers’ health – but significantly harder on women than men.
Those are key findings from a new report from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) published yesterday.
The report, Trends and Patterns in Occupational Health and Safety in Ireland, examined 12 years of data on fatalities, injury and illness. Among its findings were:
An average of 47 workers lost their lives each year between 2004 and 2013;
Employment-related injuries affected an average of 47,000 each year between 2001 and 2012;
An average of 48,000 people a year suffered from a work-related illness;
The economic cost of illnesses is substantial – amounting to €14.5 million in 2013 .
Helen Russel, Bertrand Maitre and Dorothy Watson, the report’s authors, said the risk of both injury and illness rose in the boom period from 2001-2007, and fell during the recession, between 2008- 2012. This was attributed to the rise in the proportion of inexperienced new recruits during periods of economic growth, and to increases in work intensity and hours of work. The literature also suggests that during a period of recession workers may feel insecure and are more reluctant to report injuries or to take time off .
Younger workers have the highest risk of injury and men experience a much higher risk than women – even when they are in the same sector and occupational group, and work the same hours.
The risk of work-related illness also rises with age but levels off at the oldest age groups, as less-healthy workers exit the workforce sooner.
There was no gender difference in work-related illness over the growth period, but in the recession women experienced a significantly higher risk of illness.
