Stress keeps workers away longer: ABS data

Beware workplace stress: a report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics says while 44% of people who suffered a work-related injury in 2009-10 did not miss any work, those suffering stress were more likely to take time off.

“More than half (55%) of people who suffered stress or other mental conditions were absent from work for five days or more,” the Australian Social Trends report says.

Andrew Douglas, of Macpherson + Kelley, says workplaces are more stressed these days because of the GFC and its aftermath, and thinner workforces.

“There’s no doubt stress claims are on the rise,” Douglas says.

Stress claims are harder to resolve, he adds, because it’s difficult to measure whether work is the cause and whether a person has recovered.

The most common reported workforce injuries for 2009-10 were sprains and strains, followed by chronic joint or muscle conditions, and cuts or other wounds.

The report, released this week, also gave a thumbs up to government efforts over the past two decades to reduce workplaces injuries and fatalities, saying initial indications suggest it “may be paying dividends, with increased rates of OH&S training, and declining rates of both workplace fatalities and injuries.”

But the report said these trends will need to continue to meet the government’s target of lowering workplace fatalities by 20% in the decade to 2012.

“Data from Safe Work Australia indicates that the number of fatalities had fallen by 10% (to 134) over the five years to 2007-08,” the report said.

“The number of work-related deaths rose sharply in 2008-09 (to 151) before falling again in 2009-10 (to 111). By 2009-10, the overall workplace fatality rate had fallen to a low of one per 100,000 workers.”

The report – which cited Safe Work Australia figures that work-related injuries cost $57.5 billion, or 5.9% of the country’s gross domestic product – found people in paid work tend to rate their health as better than those who aren’t – but work presents its own risks.

Blue-collar workers such as labourers, machinery operators, drivers, technicians, and tradies had the highest injury rates in 2009-10, the report said, while the lowest injury rates were among the white-collar occupations such as clerical and administrative workers, professionals and managers.

It also found women spent more time off work due to serious claims, despite having a lower incidence rate than men. For 2007-08, the median time away from work for a serious claim was 4.8 weeks for women, and 3.6 weeks for men.

Another ABS study released this week, on overwork, said while most Australians do their preferred number of hours each work, some Australian workers prefer to work fewer hours per week and may be considered as over-employed.

“A key concern is that spending too much time working may cause work/life imbalance, the effects of which include fatigue, stress and burnout, and relationship breakdown,” it says.