Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Western Australia 2011-12 to 2020-21p

Government of Western Australia
Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety
STATE OF THE WORK ENVIRONMENT
Work-related traumatic injury fatalities
in Western Australia
2011-12 to 2020-21p

II
Reference
The recommended reference for this publication is: Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and
Safety, 2022, Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Western Australia 2011-12 to 2020-21p:
Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, Western Australia, 43 pp.
ISBN 978 1 920836 76 4
© State of Western Australia (Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety) 2022
This publication is available on request in other formats for people with special needs.
This publication is also available in digital format (PDF) online at www.dmirs.wa.gov.au
Further details of resources safety publications can be obtained by contacting:
303 Sevenoaks Street
Cannington
Western Australia 6004
Telephone 1300 307 877
NRS 13 36 77
Email Safety@dmirs.wa.gov.au (general queries)
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2
CONTENTS Definitions.......................................................................................................................................................... 4
Explanatory notes............................................................................................................................................... 5
Statistical summary........................................................................................................................................... 8
Executive summary.......................................................................................................................................... 10
1 Overview of work-related traumatic injury fatalities (1988-89 to 2020-21p)............................................ 12
2 Work-related traumatic injury fatality incidence rates across Australia................................................... 14
3 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities (2011–12 to 2020–21p)............................................................. 15
4 Age focus................................................................................................................................................. 16
5 Gender focus............................................................................................................................................ 18
6 Mechanism overview................................................................................................................................ 21
6.1 Being hit by falling objects focus........................................................................................................................23
6.2 Being hit by moving objects focus.....................................................................................................................25
7 Location overview..................................................................................................................................... 28
8 Bodily location of injury overview............................................................................................................. 30
9 Occupations overview.............................................................................................................................. 31
10 Industry overview..................................................................................................................................... 33
10.1 Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing........................................................................................................................35
10.2 Construction...........................................................................................................................................................37
10.3. Mining......................................................................................................................................................................38
10.4 Transport, Postal and Warehousing..................................................................................................................40
10.5 Manufacturing........................................................................................................................................................42
LIST OF TABLES
4 Age focus................................................................................................................................................. 16
Table 1 Age groups of work-related traumatic injury bystander fatalities.....................................................16
Table 2 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities by mechanism major group...............................................22
Table 3 Top five breakdown agencies of moving objects work-related traumatic injury fatalities...........25
Table 4 Top five occupation major groups of work-related traumatic injury fatalities ...............................31
Table 5 Top five industry divisions of work-related traumatic injury fatalities..............................................33
Table 6 Mechanisms of incident for work-related traumatic injury fatalities in the Agriculture,
Forestry and Fishing industry ..................................................................................................................35
Table 7 Mechanisms of incident for work-related traumatic injury fatalities in the
Construction industry ................................................................................................................................37
Mining industry............................................................................................................................................39
Table 9 Mechanisms of incident for work-related traumatic injury fatalities in the Transport,
Postal and Warehousing industry............................................................................................................40
Manufacturing industry ............................................................................................................................42

Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety 3
LIST OF FIGURES
1 Overview of work-related traumatic injury fatalities (1988-89 to 2020-21p)............................................ 12
Figure 1 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities from 1988-89 to 2020-21p..................................................12
Figure 2 Work-related traumatic injury fatality incidence rates from 1988–89 to 2020-21p.......................13
2 Work-related traumatic injury fatality incidence rates across Australia................................................... 14
Figure 3 Work-related traumatic injury fatality incidence rates by State or Territory....................................14
3 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities (2011–12 to 2020-21p).............................................................. 15
Figure 4 Types of work-related traumatic injury fatalities..................................................................................15
4 Age focus................................................................................................................................................. 16
Figure 5 Age groups, as a proportion of work-related traumatic injury fatalities and workforce................16
Figure 6 Proportion of population and proportion of work-related traumatic injury fatalities,
by mechanism subgroup, for persons under 55 and persons aged 55 and over...........................17
Figure 7 Proportion of population and proportion of work-related traumatic injury fatalities by
mechanism subgroup for persons under 35 and persons aged 35 and over.................................17
5 Gender focus............................................................................................................................................ 18
Figure 8 Proportion of work-related traumatic injury fatalities..........................................................................18
Figure 9 Proportion of working age population....................................................................................................18
Figure 10 Proportion of employees...........................................................................................................................18
Figure 11 Proportion of hours worked......................................................................................................................18
Figure 12 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities by top five industries and gender......................................19
Figure 13 Proportion of workforce by industry and gender..................................................................................19
Figure 14 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities by top five occupations and gender..................................20
Figure 15 Proportion of workforce by top five occupations and gender............................................................20
Figure 16 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities, by mechanism subgroups and major groups................21
Figure 17 Falling objects work-related traumatic injury fatalities........................................................................23
Figure 18 Falling objects work-related traumatic injury fatalities: occupations...............................................23
Figure 19 Falling objects frequency rate and work-related traumatic injury fatalities by
industry division..........................................................................................................................................24
Figure 20 Moving objects work-related traumatic injury fatalities......................................................................25
Figure 21 Moving objects proportion of work-related traumatic injury worker fatalities and workforce
by age ...........................................................................................................................................................26
Figure 22 Moving objects frequency rate and work-related traumatic injury fatalities by
industry division..........................................................................................................................................27
7 Location overview..................................................................................................................................... 28
Figure 23 Locations of work-related traumatic injury fatalities...........................................................................28
Figure 24 Work-related traumatic injury fatality incidence rate by region .........................................................29
8 Bodily location of injury overview............................................................................................................. 30
Figure 25 Bodily locations of injury of work-related traumatic injury fatalities.................................................30
Figure 26 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities and hours worked by occupation major group...............31
Figure 27 Frequency rate of work-related traumatic injury fatalities by occupation major group................32
Figure 28 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities and hours worked by industry division.............................33
Figure 29 Frequency rate of work-related traumatic injury fatalities by industry division..............................34
Figure 30 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing..................................35
Figure 31 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Construction......................................................................37
Figure 32 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Mining.................................................................................38
Figure 33 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Manufacturing...................................................................40
Figure 34 Work-related traumatic injury fatalities in Transport, Postal and Warehousing.............................42

DEFINITIONS
AGENCY
In this report, “agency” refers to the breakdown
agency. The agency classification has been
developed to identify the chemicals, products,
processes or pieces of equipment that were
involved in a fatality.
i) breakdown agency: identifies the chemical,
product, process or equipment that was
most closely associated with the breakdown
event
ii)
agency of fatality: identifies the chemical,
product, process or equipment that was the
direct cause of the fatality.
BYSTANDER
Bystanders may include persons such
as visitors, customers, service recipients,
volunteers, or simply passers-by. Some
bystanders may be employed in work entirely
unrelated to the work-activity involved in the
fatal incident, but many are not workers.
While all bystanders in this report have been
determined as work-related fatalities, the work
activity is not related to their own employment.
Bystanders are not classed under any
occupation group.
FREQUENCY RATE
Frequency rates are used to provide an
indication of the relative number of
work-related fatalities across different years,
scaled for changes in the number of hours
worked. Frequency rates published in this
document are per million hours worked. The
fatality frequency rate is calculated as the
annual fatality total divided by the number of
hours worked, multiplied by one million. The
number of hours worked is defined as the total
number of hours worked by workers in Western
Australia.
INCIDENCE RATE
Incidence rates are used to provide an indication
of the relative number of work-related fatalities
across different years, scaled for changes in the
size of the workforce. Incidence rates published
in this document are per million employees.
The fatality incidence rate is calculated as the
annual fatality total divided by the number of
employees, multiplied by one million.
MECHANISM
The mechanism of incident classification is
intended to identify the mechanism or process
that best describes the circumstances in which
the fatality occurred. Thus, the code is allocated
on the basis of the overall circumstances of
the incident, rather than on the specific direct
cause of the fatality. The mechanism of incident
is most easily thought of in terms of an action,
exposure or event. Some types of mechanisms
are actions, such as being struck by, or striking
against, an object, or lifting, handling or carrying
objects. Other mechanisms can be exposures,
such as to a virus, environmental factors, mental
stress or specific events such as motor vehicle
incidents and cave-ins.
VEHICLE INVOLVEMENT
Fatalities were classified as involving a vehicle
where the breakdown agency subgroup class
was Conveyors and lifting plant; self-propelled
plant; Other mobile plant; Road transport or
Other transport. Fatalities meeting this criteria
were excluded where the mechanism of incident
subgroup was Hit by falling objects; Exposure to
cold; Exposure to heat; Falls from a height; Falls
on the same level or Hitting stationary objects.
WORK-RELATED FATALITY
A traumatic injury fatality which has been
determined by the Department to be
work-related.
4

EXPLANATORY NOTES
Scope and exclusions
Fatalities are listed according to the year in
which death occurred.
Unless otherwise specified, all data covers the
period 2011–12 to 2020–21.
Annual fatality totals from 1988–1989 to
2020–21 are also referenced in some places.
The scope of this report includes all persons
who sustained fatal traumatic injuries or
poisoning as a result of work activity or
exposures, and whose injuries occurred in an
incident that took place in the State of Western
Australia including Australian territories or
territorial waters off the Western Australian
coast.
‘Work’ is defined as activities undertaken for
pay, profit, payment in kind or as a livelihood,
including unpaid work in a family business,
including on a farm or in fishing. This includes:

•
employed and self-employed workers

•
volunteers, where there is a connection with
work; for example, the death of a volunteer
under the direction of a paid employee is
recorded because there is a connection
with work, although the volunteer was not
‘working’ as defined above

•
bystanders (those who died as a result of
someone else’s work activity).
This excludes:

•
fatalities related to activities not classified as
work, such as:

–
unpaid domestic or home duties

– studying (unless in connection
with employment, for example, an
apprenticeship)

– volunteer activities (unless there is a
connection with work as described above)

•
Commonwealth Government workers,
workers covered by Comcare, and Australian
Defence Force personnel

• work-related fatalities resulting from
occupational diseases. Information on
fatalities from work-related diseases is
available through workers’ compensation
(WorkCover WA) and other sources

•
road traffic accidents, unless there is a clear
relationship between the accident and the
work being performed at the time of the
accident

• fatalities due to diseases and most disorders
that would be seen as ‘diseases’, such as
cancers, heart disease, heart attacks, or
other natural causes, unless there is a clear
relationship between the accident and the
work being performed at the time of the
accident

• self-inflicted injuries (suicide).
More information on the recording of
work-related fatalities can be accessed through
the Department’s website.
Sources of information on
work-related traumatic injury
fatalities
Jurisdictions of work-related fatalities
This report includes work-related fatalities
determined under the following acts and
jurisdictions.

• Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984
(OSH Act)

–
The Department’s WorkSafe Directorate
from 1 July 2017

–
Former Department of Commerce,
WorkSafe Division prior to 30 June 2017

• Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994 (MSI
Act)

– The Department’s, Mines Safety
Directorate from 1 July 2017

– Former Department of Mines and
Petroleum prior to 30 June 2017

• Transport Safety Investigation Act 2003

–
Australian Transport Safety Bureau

• Australian Maritime Safety Authority Act 1990

–
Australian Maritime Safety Authority
recorded from 2014-15 onward

• Other

– Western Australia Police Force, the
Department’s Building and Energy etc.

6
Western Australian work-related fatalities
dataset
The information provided in this report is
based primarily on data collected from the
investigation records of the Department’s
WorkSafe Directorate in relation to the OSH Act,
and Mines Safety Directorate in relation to the
MSI Act for work-related fatalities known and
reported.
For completeness, information is also gathered
from various other sources, including:

•
the Department’s Building and Energy Division
(in relation to electrocutions)

•
the Department’s Dangerous Goods and
Critical Risks Directorate (in relation to
work-related fatalities in the petroleum and
dangerous goods industries)

• the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and
the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (mainly in
relation to air incidents)

•
the Australian Maritime Safety Authority
(in relation to deaths at sea and on marine
vessels), where possible.
Sources
Workforce data of total employed and total
hours worked by industry, occupation and
gender are sourced from the Australian Bureau
of Statistics Labour Force Survey which includes
self-employed persons.
Western Australian population by age group, by
gender or by industry figures are sourced from
the Australian Bureau of Statistics Census of
Population and Housing, 2016.
Data currency
Information provided in this report is correct as
at 31 December 2021.
Investigations by the Department and the
release of information from coronial findings
and other agencies can be lengthy; information
is subject to revision as further details become
available.
For example, the status of an incident may be
classified as work-related from preliminary
information, however following more detailed
investigation, the incident may later be changed
to not work-related.
Revisions can also occur in respect to any data
item collected, including industry classification,
employment type and jurisdiction.
Data for 2018–19, 2019–20 and 2020-21 is
considered preliminary (suffixed with ‘p’), as
some investigations related to these years are
ongoing.
Since publication of State of the Work
Environment (SOWE) Edition 56 in November
2021, there has been one revision to the number
of work-related fatalities.
The total count of work-related fatalities in the
2019–20 year has increased from 16 to 18.
Classifications systems
Traumatic incident characteristics
Incident classifications are assigned according
to the Type of Occurrence Classification System
Third Edition Revision 1 (TOOCS 3.1) provided by
Safe Work Australia.
Occupation of worker
Occupation classifications are assigned
according to the Australian and New Zealand
Standard Classification of Occupations First
Edition (ANZSCO) provided by the Australian
Bureau of Statistics.
Industry of workplace
Industry classifications are assigned according
to the Australian and New Zealand Standard
Industry Classification 2006 Edition (ANZSIC)
provided by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
The data collected is classified according to
the ANZSIC data item – Industry of workplace
which describes the main work activity of the
establishment at which the person was fatally
wounded.
This classification is consistent across the data
collections in all states and territories for data
related to both work-related fatalities and
work-related lost time injuries and diseases.
Caution should be exercised when comparing
this publication to publications with data from
other sources which may not use the same
basis for classification by industry.

Comparisons with other data sets
The information in this report may differ
from that reported by other agencies and
organisations.
Comparisons with lost time injury and
disease data
The data used to produce this report differs
from reports on lost time injuries and diseases.
The definition and identification of work-related
fatalities requires case-by-case assessment
of the work being performed and the
circumstances of the fatal event.
Comparisons with WorkCover WA
compensated work-related fatality data
WorkCover WA data on the annual number of
compensated work-related fatalities does not
match the data in this report due to differences
in the data collection methods.
WorkCover compensated work-related fatalities
include certain types of fatalities that are not
directly related to work, but occur while a person
is at work, such as fatalities resulting from road
traffic accidents and fatalities from heart attack
and other diseases.
WorkCover WA reports compensated fatalities
according to the year in which the relevant claim
is lodged, regardless of when the associated
fatality occurred.
Comparisons with Safe Work Australia
fatality data
Data on Western Australian work-related
fatalities is also collected and reported on by
Safe Work Australia.
Safe Work Australia reports based on calendar
years and uses different criteria for inclusion in
the dataset. In particular, Safe Work Australia
generally considers on-duty motor vehicle
collisions to be work-related.
Further information
The Department provides a range of statistics
on workplace lost time injuries and diseases,
including information on work-related
fatalities. This information is available from the
Department’s website.
SOWE report series
Previously, reports in the SOWE series published
by the former Department of Commerce,
WorkSafe Division provided data on
work-related fatalities from 1988–1989, a date
which coincided with the effective operation of
the OSH Act. The OSH Act accorded WorkSafe
legislative responsibility for all
work-related fatalities, excluding those under the
responsibility of the:

• Energy Safety Act 2006

• Electricity Act 1945

• Gas Standards Act 1972

• Mines Safety and Inspection Act 1994

• Petroleum (Submerged Lands) Act 1982

• Petroleum and Geothermal Energy Resources
Act 1967

• Petroleum Pipelines Act 1969.

8
STATISTICAL SUMMARY
There were 17 work-related
fatalities in 2020-21p. The
work-related fatality rate was
12.4 fatalities per 1,000,000
workers
WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
FATALITIES 2011–12 TO 2020-21P
170 people were fatally injured in
work-related incidents
Of the 170 work-related fatalities
154 (91%) were male
16 (9%) were female
VEHICLE INVOLVEMENT
52 (31%) were related to vehicles
BYSTANDERS
4 of the 9 (44%) bystander work-related
fatalities involved the mechanism of
incident being hit by moving objects
4 of the 9 (44%) were people over
65 years of age

INDUSTRY
54% of work-related fatalities were in three
industry divisions
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
was the highest at 42 (25%)
Construction had the 2nd
highest at
27 (16%)
Mining had the 3rd
highest at
23 (14%)
MECHANISMS OF INCIDENT
Being hit by falling objects was equal
highest at 33 (19%)
Being hit by moving objects was equal
highest at 33 (19%)
Falls from a height was the 3rd
highest at
23 (14%)
OCCUPATION
72% of work-related fatalities were in three
major occupation groups
Labourers was the highest at
47 (28%)
Machinery Operators and Drivers
had the 2nd
highest at 45 (26%)
Technicians and Trades Workers
had the 3rd
highest at 30 (18%)

10
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The State of the Work Environment (SOWE)
series is produced by the Department of Mines,
Industry Regulation and Safety (the Department),
Safety Regulation Group to promote awareness
of occupational safety and health in Western
Australia.
This report analyses data on traumatic injury
fatalities in Western Australia which have been
determined by the Department to be
work-related (work-related fatalities). Both
workers and bystanders are considered for
the analysis in this report. Where this report
refers to workers rather than people, bystanders
have been excluded from the analysis. Details
about the scope of this report are provided in
Explanatory notes.
Data for 2018–19, 2019–20 and 2020-21 is
considered preliminary (suffixed with ‘p’), as
some investigations related to this period are
ongoing.
Work-related traumatic injury
fatalities 2020–21p
During the year 2020–21p, there were 17
work-related fatalities in Western Australia
(preliminary data, current at December 2021).
Currently, on average, a person is fatally injured
in a work-related incident every 21 days.
The average number of work-related fatalities
has reduced since the introduction of the OSH
Act in 1988–89:

•
1990s – 23 work-related fatalities per year

•
2000s – 20 work-related fatalities per year

•
2010s – 17 work-related fatalities per year.
Summary of work-related traumatic injury
fatalities in Western Australia 2020–21

• A truck driver was fatally struck by a truck in a
roadhouse carpark.

• A loader operator sustained fatal injuries
when an underground loader fell a significant
distance off a stope.

• An apprentice glazier fell several metres and
sustained fatal injuries when a glass atrium
collapsed.

• A farm hand, working alone, was fatally
entangled in a plastic retriever machine at a
strawberry farm.

• A farm worker was fatally injured while
operating a tractor with a modified trailer
attachment.

• A haul truck operator was fatally struck by a
vehicle while working underground.

• A truck driver was fatally struck by a reversing
road grader on a road widening project.

• A truck driver was fatally crushed between a
truck and trailer during loading activities.

• A recreational fisherman was fatally injured
when their craft was struck by a barge vessel.

• A traffic controller was fatally struck by a
vehicle driven at high speed by a member of
the public.

• A co-owner, working alone, fell several metres
while cutting branches and sustained fatal
injuries.

• An administration officer suffered fatal
complications from a knee laceration after
falling on wet and slick paving.

• A maintenance worker sustained a fatal
injury whilst attending a fallen sign post with
attached conduit.

• An apprentice electrician working in a roof
space contacted an energised source and
suffered a fatal electric shock.

• A resident at an independent living home for
persons with disabilities suffered fatal injuries
during a transfer by sling hoist.

• A farmer riding a motorcycle suffered a fatal
head injury after crashing into a fence.

• A farmer attempting to conduct maintenance
was fatally struck by a tractor seeder
combination.
Analysis of work-related traumatic
injury fatalities – past 10 years
During 2011–12 to 2020–21p, 170 people were
fatally injured in work-related traumatic incidents
in Western Australia.
Comparisons with other jurisdictions are
difficult, but a standardised dataset of fatality
incidence rates available from Safe Work

Australia places Western Australia as the fifth of
eight jurisdictions, with an incidence rate
equal to the national rate.
Demographic factors
Workers aged 65 and over make up just four per
cent of the workforce, but account for 16 per
cent of work-related fatalities among workers.
Older workers were disproportionately likely
to be fatally hit by moving objects, especially
those 65 and older, who made up 31 per cent of
workers fatally hit by moving objects.
Males represent 62 per cent of the workforce by
hours worked, but comprise 92 per cent of
worker work-related fatalities.
Mechanisms of incidents
The dominant mechanism of incident was Being
hit by moving objects, accounting for 52 per cent
of work-related fatalities.
Major contributing subgroups were Being hit by
falling objects (33 work related fatalities) and
Being hit by moving objects (33 work-related
fatalities). This mechanism excludes Vehicle
incidents and other, which accounts for a further
14 per cent of work-related fatalities.
Two-thirds of bystanders fatally injured in
work-related incidents were hit by moving
objects or involved in vehicle incidents.
Occupations
Labourers and Machinery Operators and Drivers
made up a disproportionate share of
work-related fatalities.
The occupation unit group of Truck Drivers
accounted for 25 work-related fatalities.
Truck drivers make up two per cent of the
Western Australia workforce by hours worked,
but 15 per cent of work-related fatalities.
Industries
By frequency rate, most work-related fatalities
occurred in Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
followed by Arts and Recreation Services and
Transport, Postal and Warehousing.
By numbers, the top three industries for
work-related fatalities were:

•
42 – Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing

•
27 – Construction

•
23 – Mining.
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing has both the
highest number of work-related fatalities and
the highest frequency rate. This is despite a
relatively small workforce compared to many
other industries.
Fatalities in the Construction industry have been
concentrated in small sectors of the industry
such as the Building Construction subdivision
and the Non-residential Building Construction
industry group.
Affected Workers and Families
Advisory Committee
When people are fatally injured in work-related
traumatic incidents, this has a significant impact
on their families, friends and other workers.
During 2019-20, the first steps were taken
to create a support group for the friends
and relatives of people who have lost their
lives at work. The Affected Families and
Workers Advisory Committee was formally
established in 2021 and is contributing useful
recommendations to the Commission for
Occupational Safety and Health.
New legislation
The Work Health and Safety Bill was passed
through Parliament as the Work Health and
Safety Act 2020 (WHS) and was assented to by
the Governor on 10 November 2020.
The development of supporting regulations and
codes of practice is now underway. Exposure
drafts of the WHS Regulations were published
on the Department’s website on 17 December
2021. It is intended that the new WHS laws will
be implemented in March 2022.
These reforms will modernise Western
Australia’s legislation and harmonise it with the
other States and Territories (excluding Victoria),
bringing work health and safety laws for mining,
petroleum and general industries under one Act.

12
1 OVERVIEW OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY FATALITIES (1988-89 TO 2020-21P)
0
5
10
15
20
25
35
30
40
1988-89
1989-90
1990-91
1991-92
1992-93
1993-94
1994-95
1995-96
1996-97
1997-98
1998-99
1999-00
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2020-21p
No.
of
fatalities
FIGURE 1 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES FROM 1988-89 TO 2020-21P
Key findings
Figure 1 shows an apparent downward trend in
the number of people fatally injured in
work-related incidents per year, during the period
1988-89 to 2020-21p.
While the workforce has almost doubled since
1988–89, the total numbers of work-related
fatalities are significantly lower than in the late
1980s and early 1990s.
In the late 1980s and 1990s, Western Australia
recorded more than 20 work-related fatalities
each year, with two outlier years recording more
than 30 work-related fatalities.
The average number of people fatally injured in
work-related incidents per year for the 1990s
was 23 and for the 2000s was 20.
In the 2010s, only three years recorded more
than 20 work-related fatalities. The average
number of people fatally injured in work-related
incidents for this decade was 17.
A total of 170 people were fatally injured in
work-related incidents during the ten-year
reporting period of 2011–12 to 2020–21.

0
10
20
30
40
50
60
1988-89
1989-90
1990-91
1991-92
1992-93
1993-94
1994-95
1995-96
1996-97
1997-98
1998-99
1999-00
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03
2003-04
2004-05
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
Fatality
incidence
rate
per
million
workers
2020-21p
FIGURE 2 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITY INCIDENCE RATES FROM 1988–89 TO
2020–21P
Key findings
A downward trend in the fatality incidence rates
is more apparent than in the numbers of
work-related fatalities. The 2020–21p incidence
rate for Western Australia was 12.
Note: Incidence rates are used to provide
an indication of the relative number of
work-related fatalities across different
years, scaled for changes in the size of the
workforce.
The fatality incidence rate is calculated
as the annual fatality total divided by the
number of employees, multiplied by one
million. Fatality incidence rates are shown
as dots in Figure 2.

14
2 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITY
INCIDENCE RATES ACROSS AUSTRALIA
FIGURE 3 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
FATALITY INCIDENCE RATES BY
STATE OR TERRITORY (2015-16 TO
2019-20)
30
13
11
10
10
4
9
15
National rate 11
1
Safe Work Australia, Comparative Performance Monitoring report 23rd edition: Work Health and Safety Performance, 2021, p. 16.
Figures in this report have been presented as rate per 1,000,000 workers rather than rate per 100,000 workers for consistency within this
report. Years presented are the latest figures available.
Key findings
Western Australia’s work-related fatality
incidence rate is equal to the national rate.
Western Australia has the fifth highest incidence
rate of the eight jurisdictions.
Note: Figure 3 shows comparative
work-related fatality incidence rates across
Australia1
. These incidence rates are not
directly comparable with those in Figure 2.
The data in Figure 3 has been prepared
by Safe Work Australia to present a
reasonably comparable picture across
jurisdictions and may differ from incidence
rates reported by each jurisdiction, as
different criteria is used when determining
whether fatalities are work-related.
One of the greatest differences in the
criteria used by various jurisdictions is in
their treatment of on-duty motor vehicle
accidents, which occur in significant
numbers.
Western Australia uses a different
treatment than most other jurisdictions for
on-duty motor vehicle accidents, whereby
they are not determined to be work-related
unless there is a clear connection to work.
Incidents on public roads have been
excluded from Figure 3 to present more
comparable figures between jurisdictions.

3 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
FATALITIES (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
2011-12 17
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
16
22
24
11
13
13
18
2019-20p
17
2020-21p
19
Single worker fatality Bystander fatality Multiple fatality event
Key findings
Annual fatality totals can be influenced by
multiple fatality events, due to a single incident
resulting in more than one death.
The period 2011–12 to 2020–21p included four
multiple fatality events (Figure 4):

•
2011–12: A prime mover towing two trailers
left the road and fell five metres. The driver
and passenger were fatally injured.

•
2014–15: Several workers were in the
proximity of a high voltage switch when an
arc or flash ignited the conductive oil in the
switch housing, two workers were fatally
injured.
FIGURE 4 TYPES OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)

• 2015–16: There were two multiple fatality
events:

– a fishing vessel sank; one person was
found deceased, with two more persons
missing, presumed dead

–
three concrete panels became unstable
and fell from a delivery truck, hitting and
fatally injuring two workers.

16
4 AGE FOCUS
FIGURE 5 AGE GROUPS, AS A PROPORTION OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES
AND WORKFORCE (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Proportion of worker fatalities
15-24 11%
25-34 22%
35-44 16%
45-54 15%
55-64 21%
65+ 16%
Proportion of workforce
15-24 15%
25-34 23%
35-44 22%
45-54 21%
55-64 15%
65+ 4%
Key findings
Figure 5 shows that work-related fatalities
among workers are not proportionately
distributed across age groups.
Workers under 55 have a lower share of
work-related fatalities than would be expected
from their numbers in the workforce. Workers 55
and above have a higher share of work-related
fatalities than would be expected from their
numbers in the workforce.
In particular, workers aged 65 and over make up
just four per cent of the workforce, but 16 per
cent of work-related fatalities among workers.
Note: The age groups in Figure 5 were
selected to provide roughly equal
population sizes.
Work-related fatalities exclude fatalities
that occur at a workplace but are deemed
to involve natural causes, such as heart
attacks.
Bystanders were excluded from the fatality
count for Figure 5, as they do not form part
of the workforce.
TABLE 1 AGE GROUPS OF WORK-RELATED
TRAUMATIC INJURY BYSTANDER
Age range Number of bystander
fatalities
0 – 24 years of age 2
65 years of age and over 4
Key findings
The nine bystander work-related fatalities in
Table 1 were distributed across multiple age
groups, but people aged 65 and over were
over-represented.

FIGURE 6 PROPORTION OF POPULATION AND PROPORTION OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY FATALITIES, BY MECHANISM SUBGROUP, FOR PERSONS UNDER 55 AND
PERSONS AGED 55 AND OVER (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
≥ 55
< 55
Mechanism of incident subgroup
Being hit by falling objects 30%
70%
Being hit by moving objects 58%
42%
Falls from a height 30%
70%
Vehicle incident 48%
52%
Being trapped by moving machinery or equipment 25%
75%
Being trapped between stationary and moving objects 50%
50%
Western Australian population 25%
75%
Western Australian workforce 18%
82%
Fatalities 63% 37%
Key findings
Workers and bystanders aged 55 and over are
over-represented in incidents involving Being hit
by moving objects (see Section 6.2 for further
information).
They are also over-represented in incidents
involving Falls from a height; Vehicle incident; and
Being trapped between stationary and moving
objects.
Note: Figure 6 considers persons aged
under 55 and persons aged 55 and above,
and compares the share of the population
of these groups to the share of
work-related fatal incidents involving
various mechanisms of incident.
≥ 35
< 35
Mechanism of incident subgroup
Being hit by falling objects 73%
27%
Being hit by moving objects 85%
15%
Falls from a height 50%
50%
Vehicle incident 83%
17%
Being trapped by moving machinery or equipment 42%
58%
Being trapped between stationary and moving objects 63%
37%
Western Australian population 53%
47%
Western Australian workforce 61%
39%
Fatalities 32% 68%
Key findings
Workers and bystanders aged under 35 are
under-represented in incidents involving Being
hit by moving objects.
They are also under-represented in incidents
involving Being hit by falling objects and Vehicle
incident.
FIGURE 7 PROPORTION OF POPULATION AND PROPORTION OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY FATALITIES BY MECHANISM SUBGROUP FOR PERSONS UNDER 35 AND
PERSONS AGED 35 AND OVER (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Note: Figure 7 considers persons aged 34
and below and persons aged 35 and above,
and compares the share of population of
these groups to the share of the population
of these groups to the share of
work-related fatal incidents involving
various mechanisms of incident.

18
5 GENDER FOCUS
FIGURE 8 PROPORTION OF WORK-RELATED
TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES
AMONG WORKERS
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
FIGURE 9 PROPORTION OF WORKING AGE
POPULATION (2011–12 TO 2020–21)
FIGURE 10 PROPORTION OF EMPLOYEES
(2011–12 TO 2020–21)
FIGURE 11 PROPORTION OF HOURS WORKED
(2011–12 TO 2020–21)
Male Female
92% 8%
Male Female
50% 50%
Male Female
55% 45%
Male Female
62% 38%
Key findings
Males make up 92 per cent of work-related
fatalities among workers and 91 per cent of all
work-related fatalities for the period 2011-12 to
2020-21p, though they make up 50 per cent of
the working age population.
The gender disparity in work-related fatalities
may be influenced by several factors; however,
some of the higher fatality numbers may be
explained by a greater male participation in the
workforce, particularly when hours worked are
considered.

FATALITIES AMONG WORKERS BY
TOP FIVE INDUSTRIES AND GENDER
(2011-12 TO 2020-21P)
FIGURE 13 PROPORTION OF HOURS WORKED BY
INDUSTRY AND GENDER
(2011-12 TO 2020-21)
Male Female
35 4
Construction
Male Female
26 1
Mining
Male Female
22 1
Manufacturing
Male Female
18 1
Transport, Postal and Warehousing
Male Female
19 0
Male Female
78% 22%
Construction
Male Female
90% 10%
Mining
Male Female
84% 16%
Manufacturing
Male Female
80%
Transport, Postal and Warehousing
Male Female
82% 18%
20%
Key findings
While many industry divisions with higher fatality
numbers have a significant over-representation
of men in their workforce, in the five industries
with the most traumatic injury work-related
fatalities among workers, men have had more
work-related fatalities than their proportion of
hours worked explains (Figure 12).
For example, 96 per cent of the work-related
fatalities among workers in Mining were male,
yet males represent 84 per cent of the hours
worked in Mining.

20
FATALITIES AMONG WORKERS BY
TOP FIVE OCCUPATIONS AND
GENDER (2011-12 TO 2020-21P)
Truck Drivers
Male
24
Miscellaneous Labourers
Male
18
Farmers and Farm Managers
Male Female
13 1
Construction and Mining Labourers
Male Female
11 1
Farm, Forestry and Garden Workers
Male Female
11
Female
1
Female
0
3
FIGURE 15 PROPORTION OF HOURS WORKED BY
TOP FIVE OCCUPATIONS AND
GENDER (2011-12 TO 2020-21)
Truck Drivers
Male Female
93% 7%
Construction and Mining Labourers
Male Female
98% 2%
Miscellaneous Labourers
Male Female
90% 10%
Farmers and Farm Managers
Male Female
81% 19%
Farm, Forestry and Garden Workers
Male Female
79% 21%
Key findings
Many occupations that experienced higher
work-related fatality numbers have a significant
under-representation of women in their
workforce.
The gender breakdown of work-related fatalities
among workers in these occupations (Figure 14)
is similar to the gender breakdown of the hours
worked in these occupations (Figure 15).
Overall, the hours worked in the five industries
with the most traumatic injury work-related
fatalities among workers is 90 per cent male.
This is similar to the overall proportion of
work-related fatalities among workers at 92 per
cent male.

6 MECHANISM OVERVIEW
FIGURE 16 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES, BY MECHANISM SUBGROUPS AND
MAJOR GROUPS (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Being hit by falling objects
Being hit by moving objects
33
33
Falls from a height 20
Vehicle incident 23
Being trapped by moving machinery or equipment 12
Being trapped between stationary and moving objects 8
Exposure to environmental heat 4
Rollover 3
Contact with electricity 6
Slide or cave-in 3
Insect and spider bites and stings 4
Contact with hot objects 3
Unspecified mechanisms of incident 2
Exposure to other and unspecified environmental factors 2
Exposure to non-ionising radiation 2
Being hit by an animal 2
Hitting stationary objects 1
Falls on the same level 2
Explosion 2
Being assaulted by a person or persons 1
Drowning/immersion 4
Mechanism subgroups
Mechanism major groups
52%
13%
18%
12%
2%
Being hit by moving objects
Vehicle incidents and other
Falls, trips and slips of a person
Heat, electricity and other environmental factors
Chemicals and other substances
Hitting objects with a part of the body
Sound and pressure
Three major groups recorded no work-related fatalities
during the period: Biological factors, Body stressing and
Mental stress.
Note: Mechanism subgroups are colour coded to
related major groups.
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

22
Key findings
More than half of work-related fatalities coded
to the mechanism major groups were a result
of Being hit by moving objects (89 work-related
fatalities).
The mechanism subgroups Being hit by falling
objects (33 work-related fatalities) and Being hit
by moving objects (33 work-related fatalities)
were the two most prevalent mechanism of
incident subgroups. These mechanisms are
considered further in Sections 6.1 and 6.2.
Note: Being hit by moving objects is used
when a person not travelling in a vehicle
is injured as a result of being struck by a
vehicle or striking against a vehicle. This
excludes Vehicle incidents and other, which
accounts for a further 18 per cent of
work-related fatalities.
Road traffic accidents, even those that
occur in the course of a person’s work, are
not considered work-related in Western
Australia unless a clear relationship
between the accident and the work being
performed at the time of the accident
is identified. Such a relationship might
include work-related fatigue or poor vehicle
maintenance.
More information on Recording of
traumatic work related fatalities
by WorkSafe is available from the
Department’s website.
TABLE 2 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
FATALITIES BY MECHANISM MAJOR
GROUP (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Mechanism of injury Number of
fatalities
Being hit by moving objects 89
Vehicle incidents and other 31
Falls, trips and slips of a person 22
Heat, electricity and other
environmental factors
21
Chemicals and other substances 4
Sound and pressure 2
Hitting objects with a part of the
body
1
Biological factors 0
Body stressing 0
Mental stress 0
Key findings
Fifty-two per cent of work-related fatalities were
a result of Being hit by moving objects. The
subgroup breakdown for this mechanism was:

•
Being hit by falling objects (33)

•
Being hit by moving objects (33)

•
Being trapped by moving machinery or
equipment (12)

•
Being trapped between stationary and
moving objects (8)

•
Being hit by an animal (2)

•
Being assaulted by a person or persons (1).

6.1 Being hit by falling objects
focus
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2020-21p
Key findings
Being hit by falling objects (falling objects) is the
equal most common mechanism of incident
(along with Being hit by moving objects) and
comprised 19 per cent of all work-related
fatalities in Western Australia for the period
2011–12 to 2020–21p.
Common factors in relation to work-related
traumatic injury fatalities involving Being hit by
falling objects include metal, forklifts, trucks,
manual lifting equipment, concrete panels,
chains, cranes, vegetation, hydraulics, delivery,
maintenance.
FIGURE 17 FALLING OBJECTS WORK-RELATED
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
25%
33%
9%
Machinery
Operators
and Drivers
Other
33%
Technicians
and Trades
Workers
Labourers
FIGURE 18 FALLING OBJECTS WORK-RELATED
TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES:
OCCUPATIONS
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Key findings
As highlighted in Figure 18, most work-related
fatalities involving falling objects occur in the
three occupation major groups Technicians
and Trades Workers, Labourers and Machinery
Operators and Drivers.
One work-related fatality each occurred in the
occupation major groups of Managers; Sales
Workers; and Clerical and Administrative Workers.
No work-related fatalities occurred in the
major groups Professionals or Community and
Personal Service Workers.
The occupation unit group with the greatest
number of work-related fatalities involving falling
objects is Truck Drivers, with five.

24
FIGURE 19 FALLING OBJECTS FREQUENCY RATE AND WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
FATALITIES BY INDUSTRY DIVISION (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Note: Only industries where a fatality occurred are shown.
The frequency rate is a useful measure to make comparisons across industries, as it is scaled
by the size of the workforce in each industry.
Industry divisions Frequency rate Fatalities
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 0.09 5
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services 0.07 2
Manufacturing 0.06 8
Transport, Postal and Warehousing 0.03 3
Other services 0.04 3
Administrative and Support Services 0.02 1
Mining 0.02 4
Construction 0.02 5
Wholesale Trade 0.02 1
Public Administration and Safety 0.01 1
Key findings
Most work-related fatalities by industry caused
by falling objects occurred in the Manufacturing
division.
The industry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
had the most work-related fatalities occur per
hour worked.
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services and
then Manufacturing have the second and third
highest frequencies.

6.2 Being hit by moving objects
focus
FIGURE 20 MOVING OBJECTS WORK-RELATED
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
TABLE 3 TOP FIVE BREAKDOWN AGENCIES
OF MOVING OBJECTS WORK-
RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
2011-12
2014-15
2016-17
2015-16
2018-19p
2017-18
2019-20p
2020-21p
2012-13
2013-14
Single worker fatality Bystander fatality
Multiple fatality event
Key findings
Being hit by moving objects (moving objects)
is the second most common mechanism of
incident (along with Being hit by falling objects)
subgroup and is involved in 19 per cent of all
work-related fatalities in Western Australia for
the period 2011–12 to 2020–21p.
Most work-related fatalities involving moving
objects occur in the three occupation major
groups Machinery Operators and Drivers;
Labourers; and Managers.
Note: Managers includes Farmers and Farm
Managers.
Breakdown agencies Number of
fatalities
Trucks, semi-trailers, lorries 8
Tractors, agricultural or otherwise 6
Cars, station wagons, vans, utilities 3
Front end loaders, log handling plant,
other loading plant
3
Graders, dozers, snowploughs, other
scraping plant
2
Key findings
Breakdown agencies for Being hit by moving
objects predominantly involved large vehicles.

26
FIGURE 21 MOVING OBJECTS PROPORTION OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY WORKER
FATALITIES AND WORKFORCE BY AGE (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Age Proportion of fatalities
15-24
25-34
35-44
45-54
55-64
65+
3%
10%
7%
21%
28%
31%
Proportion of workforce
15%
23%
22%
21%
15%
4%
Key findings
Older workers are disproportionately more likely
to be fatally hit by moving objects, especially
workers 65 and older.
Younger workers were less likely to be fatally hit
by moving objects.
Summary of bystander work-related
fatalities 2011–11 to 2020–21p
Bystanders make up a significant share of
work-related fatalities. Four bystanders were
fatally injured in workplace incidents when hit by
moving objects during 2011–12 to 2020–21p.

•
A three-year-old was sitting in the bucket of a
tractor. The child alighted without the driver’s
knowledge and was fatally struck by the
moving vehicle.

• A person was assisting to round up cattle
on a farm was struck and fatally injured by a
farm ute.

• A backhoe that was being used to dig
channels fatally struck a patron.

• A prisoner was fatally crushed against a wall
by a manoeuvring truck.

FIGURE 22 MOVING OBJECTS FREQUENCY RATE AND WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY
FATALITIES BY INDUSTRY DIVISION (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Note: Only industries where a fatality occurred are shown.
The frequency rate is a useful measure to make comparisons across industries, as it is scaled
by the size of the workforce in each industry.
Industry divisions Frequency rate Fatalities
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 0.19 10
Transport, Postal and Warehousing 0.05 5
Construction 0.04 8
Other services 0.03 2
Administrative and Support Services 0.02 1
Public Administration and Safety 0.02 2
Retail Trade 0.01 2
Mining 0.01 2
Manufacturing 0.01 1
Key findings
Most work-related fatalities caused by moving
objects were in the Agriculture, Forestry and
Fishing division (Figure 22).
While the Construction industry has a relatively
high number of work-related fatalities (8), the
frequency rate for this industry is low.
The industry subdivision with the most persons
fatally hit by moving objects is Agriculture, at 10
of the 33 work-related fatalities.

28
7 LOCATION OVERVIEW
FIGURE 23 LOCATIONS OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Key findings
Most work-related fatalities occurred in the Perth
Metropolitan area (38 per cent), followed by the
Pilbara (15 per cent) and the Wheatbelt (15 per
cent).
4
Kimberley
25
Pilbara
1
Gascoyne
7
Mid West
15
Goldfields-Esperance
25
Wheatbelt
65
Perth Metropolitan
5
Peel
16
South West
6
Great Southern
Note: One fatality is recorded with an
unknown location and is omitted from
the figure.

Kimberley
27 per million
Pilbara
42 per million
Gascoyne
22 per million
Mid West
29 per million
Goldfields-Esperance
50 per million
Wheatbelt
84 per million
Perth Metropolitan
8 per million
Peel
14 per million
South West
23 per million Great Southern
25 per million
Fatality incidence rate
(fatalities per million
workers per year)
0 25 50 84
FIGURE 24 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITY INCIDENCE RATE BY REGION
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Key findings
The fatality incidence rate reflects the number of
fatalities per worker. The incidence rate is lowest
in the Perth Metro and Peel regions. Higher rates
of fatalites in other regions are concentrated in
the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing and Mining
industries.
Incidence rates are used to provide an indication
of the relative number of work-related fatalities
across regions, scaled for differences in the size
of the workforce.
Note: One fatality is recorded with an
unknown location and is omitted from
the figure.

30
8 BODILY LOCATION OF INJURY OVERVIEW
FIGURE 25 BODILY LOCATIONS OF INJURY OF
Note: The bodily location of injury code is
allocated to the part of the body affected
by the most serious injury.
Because of the traumatic nature of
work-related fatality events, it is common
for injuries to occur in multiple locations
across the body. The top five bodily
locations have been included.
68 Multiple locations
20 Unspecified locations
9 Cranium
7 Respiratory
system
6
Circulatory
system
9 Systemic conditions
27 Head
4 Chest
Key findings
The head or neck is involved in 23 per cent of all
work-related fatal incidents.
From the subset of incidents where a specific
bodily location of incident can be identified, the
head and neck were involved in 56 per cent of
cases, and the torso in 21 per cent of cases.
Incidents involving the circulatory system were
primarily attributed to heat stroke.
Incidents involving the respiratory system were
primarily attributed to drowning.
Incidents involving other systemic conditions
were primarily attributed to electrocution.

9 OCCUPATIONS OVERVIEW
FIGURE 26 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES AND HOURS WORKED BY OCCUPATION
MAJOR GROUP (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Bystanders
Proportion of fatalities
5%
Proportion of hours worked
Labourers 28% 9%
Machinery Operators and Drivers 26% 10%
Technicians and Trades Workers 18% 19%
Managers 14% 14%
Professionals 6% 22%
Community and Personal Service Workers 1% 8%
Sales Workers 1% 6%
Clerical and Administrative Workers 1% 12%
N/A
TABLE 4 TOP FIVE OCCUPATION MAJOR
GROUPS OF WORK-RELATED
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Note: There are eight occupation major groups under the Australian and New Zealand Standard
Classification of Occupations First Edition (ANZSCO) Classification system.
Bystanders do not fall under an ANZSCO major group, but have been included as a separate
category.
Proportions of work-related fatalities and hours worked in Western Australia for each occupation
major group are shown in the figure above.
Occupations Number of
fatalities
Labourers 47
Machinery Operators and Drivers 45
Technicians and Trades Workers 30
Managers 23
Professionals 10
Key findings
If each occupation had a number of work-related
fatalities proportionate to their share of the
workforce, the bars in Figure 26 representing
the proportion of work-related fatalities and
proportion of workforce would be of the same
length for any given occupation.
This is not the case for most occupation major
groups. Many occupation major groups with a
high proportion of the workforce, such as Sales
Workers and Clerical and Administrative Workers,
have very few work-related fatalities over the
period 2011–12 to 2020–21p.
Other occupation major groups that make up
a relatively small proportion of the workforce,
such as Labourers and Machinery Operators
and Drivers have large numbers of work-related
fatalities as can be seen in Table 4.
Note: Managers includes Farmers and Farm
Managers.

32
0.30
0.26
0.09 0.09
0.03
0.02 0.01 0.01
Labourers
Machinery
Operators
and
drivers
Technicians
and
Trades
Workers
Managers
Professionals
Sales
Workers
Community
and
Personal
Service
Worker
Clerical
and
Administrative
Workers
Overall frequency rate = 0.09
FIGURE 27 10 YEAR FREQUENCY RATE OF
FATALITIES BY OCCUPATION MAJOR
GROUP (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Note: Frequency rates compare the number
of work-related fatalities per million hours
worked across occupation major groups,
adjusting for total hours worked in each
occupation.
When frequency rates are considered,
useful comparison between different
occupations can be made.
Note: Occupations with a
disproportionately high share of work-
related fatalities relative to their proportion
of the workforce are shown in red, and
those with a disproportionately low share
are shown in teal.
Key findings
The overall ten year frequency rate, for all
occupation major groups, for the period
2011–12 to 2020–21p, was 0.09.
Most occupation major groups have a
lower frequency rate, with only two having a
significantly higher frequency rate than overall.
Labourers have both the highest number of
work-related fatalities and the highest frequency
rate, closely followed by Machinery Operators
and Drivers.
Nine bystanders were fatally injured in
work-related incidents
4
Hit by moving objects
3
Vehicle incident
2
Fall from height
Note: Bystanders may include persons
such as visitors, customers, service
recipients, volunteers, or simply
passers-by. Some bystanders may be
employed in work entirely unrelated to the
work-activity involved in the fatal incident,
but many are not workers.
While all of these bystanders have been
determined as work-related fatalities, the
work activity is not related to their own
employment.
Bystanders are not classed under any
occupation group and are excluded from
the hours worked calculations in Figure 26.

10 INDUSTRY OVERVIEW
FIGURE 28 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES AND HOURS WORKED BY INDUSTRY
DIVISION (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
TABLE 5 TOP FIVE INDUSTRY DIVISIONS OF
Industry divisions Proportion of fatalities Proportion of hours worked
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 25% 3%
Construction 16% 11%
Mining 14% 10%
Manufacturing 11% 7%
Transport, Postal and Warehousing 12% 5%
Other services 4% 4%
Public Administrative and Safety 4% 6%
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services 3% 2%
Wholesale Trade 2% 3%
Administrative and Support Services 1% 3%
Retail Trade 1% 8%
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services 1% 2%
Accommodation and Food Services 1% 5%
Information Media and Telecommunications 0% 1%
Arts and Recreation Services 4% 1%
Education and Training 1% 7%
Health Care and Social Assistance 1% 10%
Financial and Insurance Services 0% 2%
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 0% 8%
Note: There are 19 Industry divisions under the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industry
Classification 2006 Edition (ANZSIC). Proportions of work-related fatalities and hours worked in
Western Australia for each industry division are shown in Figure 28 above.
Industry divisions Number of
fatalities
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 42
Construction 27
Mining 23
Transport, Postal and Warehousing 21
Manufacturing 19
Key findings
The size of each industry’s workforce varies.
Many industry divisions with a high proportion
of the workforce, such as Professional, Scientific
and Technical Services and Health Care and
Social Assistance, have low or no work-related
fatalities over the period 2011–12 to 2020–21p
(Figure 28).
Other industries that make up a relatively small
proportion of the workforce, such as Agriculture,
Forestry and Fishing and Transport, Postal and
Warehousing have large numbers of work-related
fatalities (Table 5).

34
0.78
Agriculture,
Forestry
and
Fishing
0.26
Arts
and
Recreation
Services
0.21
Transport,
Postal
and
Warehousing
0.17
Electricity,
Gas,
Water
and
Waste
Services
0.15
Manufacturing
0.13
Construction
0.13
Mining
0.09
Other
Services
0.04
Administrative
and
Support
Services
0.03
Rental,
Hiring
and
Real
Estate
Services
0.06
Public
Administration
and
Safety
0.00
Information
Media
and
Telecommunications
0.05
Wholesale
Trade
0.01
Retail
Trade
0.02
Accommodation
and
Food
Services
0.01
Education
and
Training
0.01
Health
Care
and
Social
Assistance
0.00
Financial
and
Insurance
Services
0.00
Professional,
Scientific
and
Technical
Services
Overall frequency rate = 0.09
FIGURE 29 10 YEAR FREQUENCY RATE OF WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC INJURY FATALITIES BY
INDUSTRY DIVISION (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Note: Frequency rates compare the number
of work-related fatalities per million hours
worked across industries, adjusting for
total hours worked in each industry.
When frequency rates are considered,
useful comparison between different
industries can be made.
Divisions with a disproportionately high
share of work-related fatalities relative to
their proportion of the workforce are shown
in red, and those with a disproportionately
low share are teal.
Key findings
The overall ten year frequency rate for all
industry divisions, for the period 2011–12 to
2020–21p, was 0.09. Most industry divisions
have a lower frequency rate, with only six of the
19 divisions having a higher frequency rate than
overall.
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing has both the
highest number of work-related fatalities and the
highest frequency rate. It will be considered in
detail in Section 10.1.
Certain industry divisions have been highlighted
due to historically higher levels of work-related
fatalities when compared with other divisions
and will be covered in Sections 10.2 to 10.5.

10.1 Agriculture, Forestry and
Fishing
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2020-21p
FIGURE 30 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY FATALITIES IN
AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND
FISHING (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Key findings
Despite relatively few hours worked compared to
many other industries, the Agriculture, Forestry
and Fishing industry has the highest number of
work-related fatalities for the period 2011–12 to
2020–21p, with 42 fatalities. This is followed by
the Construction industry with 27 work-related
fatalities (Figure 29).
The fatality frequency rate in the Agriculture,
Forestry and Fishing industry is three times as
high as the industry with the second highest
work-related fatality frequency rate (Arts and
Recreation Services), and over seven times as
high as the overall rate across industries.
Over three quarters of Agriculture, Forestry and
Fishing industry work-related fatalities occurred
in the Agriculture subdivision.
TABLE 6 MECHANISMS OF INCIDENT FOR
FATALITIES IN THE AGRICULTURE,
FORESTRY AND FISHING INDUSTRY
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Mechanism of incident subgroup Number of
fatalities
Vehicle incident 9
Being hit by falling objects 5
Drowning/immersion 4
Being trapped by moving machinery
or equipment
4
Rollover 3
Being hit by an animal 2
Explosion 1
Exposure to other and unspecified
environmental factors
1

36
Key findings
The top two mechanism of incident subgroups
for Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing are Being hit
by moving objects and Vehicle incident.
Twenty-nine per cent of work-related fatalities
were in persons aged 65 years and older.
The occupations recording the greatest number
of work-related fatalities in the Agriculture,
Forestry and Fishing industry were:

• Farmers and Farm Managers (33%)

• Farm, Forestry and Garden Workers (29%)

• Air and Marine Transport Professionals (10%).
The top three breakdown agencies of incident in
the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry for
the period 2011–12 to 2020–21p were:

• Mobile Plant and Transport (62%)

– Tractors, agricultural or other (19%)

– Industrial aircraft (10%)

• Environmental Agencies (14%)

• Animal, Human and Biological Agencies
(10%).
Examples of Agriculture, Forestry and
Fishing work-related traumatic injury

• A tree feller was fatally injured when a tree
branch struck him.

• A farmer was kicked by an animal, which
fatally aggravated an existing medical
condition.

• A casual farm worker sustained fatal injuries
when she was struck by a bull and crushed
against a fence.

• A farmer, undertaking work activities, was
repeatedly stung by bees and suffered a fatal
reaction.

• A farm hand was fatally injured when a
hydraulically supported steel bucket he was
working under fell.

• A farmer was fatally injured after being
thrown from a quad bike.

• A fishing vessel sank resulting in the fatalities
of all three workers aboard.

10.2 Construction
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2020-21p
FATALITIES IN CONSTRUCTION
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Key findings
The Construction industry has the second
highest number of work-related fatalities in the
period 2011–12 to 2020–21p, with 27.
More hours are worked in Construction than any
other industry; therefore, the work-related fatality
frequency rate in the Construction industry is the
sixth highest of the 19 industry sectors (Figure
29).
For a given hour worked, a person in the
Construction industry has 1.4 times the average
risk across all industries of a work-related
fatality.
Forty-one per cent of Construction industry
work-related fatalities occurred in the Building
Construction subdivision.
This industry subdivision works 17 per cent of
the entire hours of the industry and
work-related fatalities for this subdivision are
disproportionately high.
Thirty per cent of work-related fatalities occurred
in the Non-residential Building Construction
industry group alone, despite this industry group
working only six per cent of the entire hours of
the industry.
WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY FATALITIES IN THE
CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
fatalities
Contact with electricity 5
Being trapped between stationary
and moving objects
2
Slide or cave-in 1
Key findings
The top three mechanism of incident subgroups
for Construction are Being hit by moving objects,
Being hit by falling objects and Contact with
electricity (Table 7).
Sixty-seven per cent of work-related fatalities
occurred within the Perth Metropolitan Region.
Thirty per cent of work-related fatalities were in
persons younger than 25.
Only one of the 27 work-related fatalities was
female.
of work-related fatalities in the Construction
industry were:

• Construction and Mining Labourers (26%)

• Miscellaneous Labourers (19%)

• Glaziers, Plasterers and Tilers (15%).

38
The top four breakdown agencies of incident in
the Construction industry were:

• Mobile Plant and Transport (26%)


• Machinery and Mainly Fixed Plant (19%)

• Materials and Substances (19%).
Examples of Construction work-related
traumatic injury fatalities 2011–12 to
2020–21p

• A self-employed builder fell five metres
through a skylight, sustaining fatal injuries.

• A teenager fatally fell 10-12 metres through a
hole in a glass atrium ceiling that was being
installed.

• A scaffolder fatally collapsed from heat
stress.

• A labourer was fatally injured after he
fell from a limestone wall that was being
constructed.

• A dogman was fatality injured after a one
tonne panel fell while the panel was being
moved by a crane.

• A plumber was working in a deep trench
when a water main burst, filling the trench
and overcoming the worker.

• A construction worker was fatally struck in
the head by a 500 kg metal support beam.

• Two workers were fatally crushed when
a concrete panel fell from the rear of a
delivery truck that was making a delivery to a
construction site.

• A glazier received fatal crush injuries when
a crate of plate glass fell onto him during
unloading.
10.3. Mining
FATALITIES IN MINING
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2019-20p
Key findings
During the period 2011–12 to 2020–21p, there
have been 23 work-related fatalities in the Mining
industry (Figure 32).
The Mining industry has the third highest
number of work-related fatalities recorded for
this period (Figure 29).
The fatality frequency rate in the Mining industry
is the seventh highest of the 19 industry
divisions.
However, the Mining industry works the second
most hours of any industry in Western Australia,
which leads to a relatively low frequency rate.
Over three quarters of Mining industry work-
related fatalities occurred in the Metal Ore Mining
subdivision.

INJURY FATALITIES IN THE MINING
INDUSTRY (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
fatalities
or equipment
5
Vehicle incident 4
and moving objects
3
Slide or cave-in 2
Key findings
The top three mechanism of incident subgroups
for Mining are Being trapped by moving
machinery and equipment, Being hit by falling
objects and Vehicle incident (Table 8).
Workers aged 25–34 represent 43 per cent
of Mining work-related fatalities, despite
representing only 30 per cent of the Western
Australian Mining industry workforce.
One work-related fatality was female.
The occupations recording the highest number
of work-related fatalities in the Mining industry
were:

• Stationary Plant Operators (35%)

• Mechanical Engineering Trades Workers
(17%)

• Truck Drivers (17%).
The top three agencies of incident in the Mining
industry for the period 2011–12 to 2020–21p
were:

•
Mobile Plant and Transport (43%)

– Trucks, semi-trailers, lorries (22%)


Examples of Mining work-related traumatic
injury fatalities 2011–12 to 2020–21p

• A worker was fatally crushed between the
drill rod centraliser arm and drill head while
carrying out maintenance.

• While working on a dozer, the belly plate
fatally crushed a fitter.

• An operator was working underground using
an elevating work platform when they were
fatally injured.

• An electrician received fatal crush injuries
while working under a motor in the ore
crushing area.

• A senior field technician was performing
survey reconnaissance when the effects
associated with heat stress proved fatal.

• A boilermaker received fatal crush injuries
when a gantry above collapsed.

• A production operator was fatally crushed
between the handrail and mechanical ladder.

• A haul truck operator was fatally injured when
the truck rolled over.

• A worker fatally collapsed from heat stroke
while working underground.

• A surveyor was working alone when they
were fatally stung by a bee.

40
10.4 Transport, Postal and
Warehousing
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2020-21p
FIGURE 33 WORK-RELATED TRAUMATIC
INJURY FATALITIES IN TRANSPORT,
POSTAL AND WAREHOUSING
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
Key findings
There have been 21 work-related fatalities in
the Transport, Postal and Warehousing industry
(Figure 33).
The Transport, Postal and Warehousing industry
had the fourth-highest number of
work-related fatalities recorded during the period
2011–12 to 2020–21p with the Manufacturing
industry (Table 5).
The work-related fatality frequency rate in the
Transport, Postal and Warehousing industry
(Figure 29) is the third highest after Agriculture,
Forestry and Fishing and Arts and Recreation
Services.
The industry subdivisions recording the
greatest number of work-related fatalities in
the Transport, Postal and Warehousing industry
were:

• Road Transport (57%)

• Water Transport (14%).

• Warehousing and Storage Services (10%)

• Rail Transport (10%)
FATALITIES IN THE TRANSPORT,
POSTAL AND WAREHOUSING
INDUSTRY (2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
fatalities
Vehicle incident 7
Falls on the same level 1
Explosion 1

Key findings
The top two mechanism of incident subgroups
for Transport, Postal and Warehousing are
Vehicle incident and Being hit by moving objects.
Workers aged 35–44 represent 43 per cent of all
Transport, Postal and Warehousing work-related
fatalities, despite representing only 22 per cent
of the Western Australian Transport, Postal and
Warehousing industry workforce.
One work-related fatality was female.
of work-related fatalities in the Transport, Postal
and Warehousing industry were:

• Truck Drivers (57%)

•
Air and Marine Transport Professionals (10%).
The top three agencies of incident in the
Transport, Postal and Warehousing industry for
the period 2011–12 to 2020–21p were:

•
Mobile plant and transport (62%)

– Trucks, semi-trailers, lorries (38%)

– Trains (10%)

•
Animal, human and biological agencies (14%)
Examples of Transport, Postal and
Warehousing work-related fatalities
2011–12 to 2020–21p

• A deck worker was fatally crushed between
a container and a cargo skip when a wave
came over the back deck of the vessel.

• An elderly contractor was fatally crushed
between a prime mover and a stationary
truck.

• An employee was found deceased a
kilometre from his truck after it became
bogged.

• A fatality occurred when a seaman fell into
the ocean from a ship’s ladder.

• A pilot was involved in a fatal helicopter crash
whilst flying to a bulk carrier at night.

• A truck driver was opening the liner of his
truck and fell back hitting his head and
sustaining fatal injuries.

• A linesman was working on a railway
crossing where he was fatally struck by a
train.

• A self-employed truck driver was fatally run
over by a grain truck waiting to unload.

42
10.5 Manufacturing
FATALITIES IN MANUFACTURING
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
INJURY FATALITIES IN THE
MANUFACTURING INDUSTRY
(2011–12 TO 2020–21P)
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19p
2019-20p
2020-21p
Key findings
There have been 19 work-related fatalities in the
Manufacturing industry (Figure 34).
The Manufacturing industry has the
fifth-highest number of work-related fatalities
recorded during this period 2011–12 to
2020–21p (Table 5).
The fatality frequency rate in the Manufacturing
industry (Figure 29) is the fifth highest of the 19
industry divisions.
The top two industry subdivisions for
Manufacturing were:

• Food Product Manufacturing (5)

• Non-metallic Mineral Product Manufacturing
(4).
fatalities
or equipment
3
and moving objects
2
Key findings
The top two mechanisms of incident subgroups
for Manufacturing are Being hit by falling objects
and Falls from a height (Table 9).
The occupation major group Machinery
Operators and Drivers recorded 38 per cent of
Manufacturing work-related fatalities.
of work-related fatalities in the Manufacturing
industry were:

• Truck Drivers (21%)

• Machine Operators (11%)

• Chief Executives, General Managers and
Legislators (11%).
The top agencies of incident in the
Manufacturing industry for the period 2011–12
to 2020–21p were:


– Forklift trucks (26%)

•
Materials and substances (11%)

• Mobile plant and transport (11%)

•
Other and unspecified agencies (11%).

Examples of Manufacturing work-related

• A truck driver was fatally hit by a one tonne
steel pipe, which fell when being unloaded
from his truck by a forklift.

• A worker had been working in an elevator
when he fell down the lift shaft receiving fatal
injuries.

• A welder was working with a submerged arc
welding machine mounted on a large boom
when the boom fell onto the worker causing
fatal injuries.

• A managing director was fatally hit by a
reversing front-end loader as he was walking
through the workplace yard.

• A scaffolder fell 12 metres and was fatally
injured when he entered a manway where
scaffolding had been removed.

• While standing on pallet held by a forklift, a
truck driver was fatally injured when he was
struck by a pallet after falling three metres.

• A mill offsider was fatally buried in tonnes
of loose sand while attempting to clear a
conveyor belt blockage.

• A leading hand suffered fatal crush injuries
while attempting to clear a blockage in an
automatic brick stacker.

• While cleaning an industrial mixer, a worker
became entangled and sustained fatal
injuries.

• A factory hand was fatally injured when he
was grabbed by a robotic pallet lifter inside a
loading chute.

Government of Western Australia
303 Sevenoaks Street
Cannington WA 6107
Telephone: 1300 307 877
NRS: 13 36 77
Email: Safety@dmirs.wa.gov.au
Website: www.dmirs.wa.gov.au
WSMAR22_1130

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