Almost three quarters (72%) of work-related deaths last year were in the agriculture sector.
The Health and Safety Authority carried out a total of 1,348 farm inspections in 2023, with almost half of these being carried out during targeted inspection campaigns.
The HSA has today (Monday, June 24), published its 2023 Annual Report highlighting key achievements and outcomes across its broad occupational safety and health, chemical safety, market surveillance and accreditation remit over the course of the year.
This is the HSA’s second annual report under its Strategy Statement 2022-2024 which it said is being delivered against a backdrop of an expanding population and growing workforce.
Overall, 9,995 proactive and 463 reactive inspections completed across all economic sectors and 225 investigations were completed following incident reports received.
HSA farm inspections
The HSA said that four risk-specific inspection campaigns were carried out in the farming sector, focusing on livestock safety, tractor and quad bike safety, working at height, and on farmer health and wellbeing.
The annual report states that farmers were encouraged to consider the risks associated with these issues and to prepare to manage these risks prior to encountering them during their farming year.
Farmers were encouraged to make proper use of the Farm Safety Code of Practice as a means of managing risk and injury prevention throughout the year.
A total of 89 enforcements were issued.
Work-related deaths
Other data contained in the report was that 83 investigations were undertaken into fatal accidents across all sectors, of which 43 were deemed work-related.
The majority (72%) of the 43 investigations occurred in agriculture (20 deaths) and construction (11 deaths).
The report also mentions that new regulations introduced, the first of their kind in the EU, making helmet wearing and training for all quad bike operators a legal requirement.
The HSA also launched an inspection programme targeting renewable energy installations, including wind farms, solar farms and anaerobic digestion facilities.
Cork has the highest number of fatalities in 2023 with seven work-related deaths, followed by Dublin and Kerry which each had five.
Minister of State for business, employment and retail, Emer Higgins said: “I would like to express my condolences to the families, friends and communities of the 43 people who lost their lives in workplace accidents in 2023.
“Each life lost is one too many and I urge all employers and employees to prioritise health and safety and make full use of the HSA’s resources and tools.
“There has never been more people at work in Ireland but with more people working, we cannot become complacent. Together we can help ensure that every worker in Ireland can return home safely at the end of the day.”
The HSA records show an overall decrease in the rate of work-related fatalities per 100,000 workers in Ireland over the past 10 years (2014-2023), from the rate of 2.8 in 2014 to 1.6 in 2023.
Conor O’Brien, chief executive officer of the HSA said: “While much progress has been 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.
“As the Health and Safety Authority prepares its new 2025-2027 Strategy, I will be seeking input from our sectoral advisory committees as to how we can make a significant step change in these sectors to significantly reduce the fatality, illness and injury rates.
“We will continue to develop a wide range of user friendly tools and guidance to help achieve these aims,” he added.