Lost-time injuries—Canada

Allowed lost-time injury rate, Provinces and Territories of Canada
Province 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Alberta 1.98 1.73 1.51 1.42 1.49 1.39 1.34 1.31 1.25 1.25
British Columbia 3.06 2.96 2.35 2.27 2.33 2.34 2.30 2.27 2.22 2.20
Manitoba 4.31 4.08 3.54 3.37 3.27 3.33 3.12 3.17 2.99 2.89
New Brunswick 1.36 1.36 1.29 1.35 1.26 1.18 1.13 1.15 1.15 1.33
Newfoundland 2.25 2.15 2.07 2.03 1.99 1.76 1.78 1.73 1.70 1.72
Nova Scotia 2.72 2.59 2.33 2.21 2.08 2.01 1.92 1.90 1.94 1.93
Northwest Territories / Nunavut 2.73 2.51 2.17 2.45 2.37 2.13 2.21 2.33 2.02 2.03
Ontario 1.53 1.45 1.20 1.15 1.05 1.01 0.95 0.92 0.85 0.94
Prince Edward Island 1.37 1.35 1.33 1.21 1.28 1.35 1.22 1.39 1.28 1.47
Quebec 2.44 2.32 2.02 1.97 1.93 1.85 1.82 1.80 1.74 1.80
Saskatchewan 3.72 3.57 3.33 3.15 2.90 2.81 2.57 2.24 2.04 2.11
Yukon Territory 2.90 2.73 2.38 2.12 2.28 2.14 1.87 2.07 2.00 2.10
Canada 2.24 2.12 1.82 1.76 1.72 1.65 1.60 1.56 1.51 1.54

Source

Association of Workers Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC). Accompanying notes available on the Detailed Key Statistical Measures Report on the AWCBC website. Ontario data includes Schedule 1 only. Rates for Schedule 2 are available in the next table.

Lost-time injuries—Ontario

Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) allowed lost-time injury claims/rates (year of injury/illness)
Claim type 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Schedule 1 61,992 50,104 46,160 43,371 42,702 41,508 40,585 38,953 43,386 44,660
Schedule 2 16,268 14,739 14,040 13,301 12,823 12,922 13,103 12,617 13,982 14,869
Schedule 1 rate 1.51 1.27 1.15 1.05 1.01 0.95 0.92 0.85 0.94 0.95
Schedule 2 rate 2.56 2.10 2.00 1.91 1.85 1.85 1.90 1.80 1.96 2.04

Source

Workplace Safety and Insurance Board By the Numbers 2017, Schedule 1 and Schedule 2.

No lost-time injuries

WSIB allowed no lost-time injury claims/rates (year of injury/illness)
Claim type 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Schedule 1 144,489 115,340 108,660 108,954 109,648 110,120 110,196 107,504 106,888 111,411
Schedule 2 17,182 16,503 15,192 14,721 14,371 15,208 15,328 14,629 14,617 14,840
Schedule 1 rate 3.52 2.93 2.71 2.64 2.59 2.53 2.49 2.36 2.31 2.36
Schedule 2 rate 2.70 2.36 2.16 2.12 2.07 2.18 2.22 2.09 2.05 2.03

Source

Workplace Safety and Insurance Board By the Numbers 2017, Schedule 1 and Schedule 2.

Critical injuries

Ministry of Labour reported critical injuries and critical injury rate (year of injury)
Event type 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Total critical injury events 1,194 1,166 1,104 966 1,147 1,130 1,095 873 938 1,898
Critical injury rate (per 100,000 workers) 19.81 19.94 18.57 15.91 18.77 18.13 17.41 13.75 14.62 28.97

Source

Ministry of Labour Data Systems 2008 to 2017. Ministry of Labour calculation based on Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey 2008 to 2017.

Notes

Critical injury rates are calculated by the Ministry of Labour based on the number of reported critical injuries divided by the number of people employed under provincial jurisdiction.

Contributing factors for the increase in critical injuries reported to the Ministry of Labour starting in 2017 include (1) the Ministry of Labour clarifying the ministry’s interpretation of the legal definition of a critical injury in September 2016 to include fractures of the wrist, hand, ankle, foot, multiple fingers and toes; and (2) increased public awareness of reporting requirements after MOL media campaigns (awareness workbooks, employer guides, Prevention Starts Here poster) and Working At Heights (WAH) training.

Traumatic fatalities

Traumatic fatalities (year of death) counts and rates per 100,000 workers
Claim type 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Schedule 1 (year of entitlement) 60 62 63 71 64 82 64 57 60 70
Schedule 2 (year of entitlement) 4 6 6 5 6 5 1 4 4 2
Traumatic fatalities - MOL (year of death) 46 48 56 55 39 65 56 53 45 54
Total Traumatic Fatalities for Ontario: Ministry of Labour & Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (year of death) 79 77 85 94 78 102 81 72 72 81
Traumatic Fatality Rates, Per 100,000 Workers Ministry of Labour and Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (year of death) 1.31 1.32 1.43 1.55 1.28 1.64 1.29 1.13 1.12 1.24

Sources

  • Fatality count - Workplace Safety and Insurance Board By the Numbers 2017, Schedule 1 and 2 and Workplace Safety Insurance Board Day of Mourning Fatalities Report: 2008 to 2017.
  • Fatality rates - calculated by the Ministry of Labour.

Note

Fatality rates are calculated by dividing the number of reported fatalities by the number of people employed under provincial jurisdiction, as retrieved from the Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey 2008 to 2017.

Traumatic fatalities—Top sectors

Top sectors - Traumatic fatality counts (and rates per 100,000) for schedule 1
Select Sectors* 2011-13 2012-14 2013-15 2014-16 2015-17 2017 Only
Construction 19 (5.91) 20 (5.78) 22 (5.78) 22 (5.62) 21 (5.11) 20 (4.73)
Transportation 14 (5.9) 17 (6.69) 17 (6.57) 13 (5.19) 13 (5.09) 17 (6.32)
Mining 4 (12.46) 3 (9.09) 3 (10.37) 2 (8.13) 2 (7.00) 2 (7.05)
Forestry 2 (23.05) 1 (11.12) 1 (13.96) 1 (10.04) 1 (12.89) 1 (9.44)
All Sectors: WSIB Traumatic Fatality Rates for Ontario: Schedule 1 72 (1.70) 70 (1.61) 68 (1.52) 60 (1.33) 62 (1.35) 70 (1.48)

Sources

  • By the Numbers: 2017 Workplace Safety and Insurance Board Statistical Report Schedule 1.
  • Workplace Safety and Insurance Board Day of Mourning Fatalities Report: 2011 to 2017.

Note

Selected sectors are those with high fatality rates or counts. Rates are per 100,000 Workplace Safety and Insurance Board covered employment and are calculated based on the number of Workplace Safety and Insurance Board allowed fatalities (year of death) divided by Workplace Safety and Insurance Board covered employment by industry sectors.

Traumatic fatalities—Top events

Top 3 events and other events for traumatic fatalities
Year 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Motor vehicle accidents 22 24 25 37 35 26 14 21 27
Falls from heights 16 20 12 9 18 8 14 9 10
Crushed by 10 6 17 9 16 3 15 17 18
Other events 29 35 40 24 34 44 29 25 26
All events 77 85 94 79 103 81 72 72 81

Source

  • Workplace Safety and Insurance Board database. Data extracted by the Ministry of Labour. May not exactly match published WSIB data.
  • Ministry of Labour. Provincial traumatic fatalities by year of death 2009-2017.

Notes

  • Provincial traumatic fatalities are not available prior to 2009.
  • The Motor Vehicle Accident fatalities reported in this analysis may include non-traffic accidents.

Occupational disease fatalities

Allowed occupational disease fatalities
Fatality type 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
WSIB occupational disease fatalities (year of entitlement) 257 261 301 228 222 181 209 212 231 215
WSIB occupational disease fatalities (year of death) 172 170 174 164 164 141 152 154 136 146
Occupational disease fatality rate (per 100,000 workers) 2.86 2.91 2.93 2.70 2.68 2.26 2.42 2.43 2.12 2.23

Sources

  • Fatality count – Workplace Safety and Insurance Board By the Numbers 2017, Schedule 1 and 2.
  • Fatality rates – calculated by the Ministry of Labour.

    • Note

    Fatality rates are calculated by dividing the number of reported fatalities by the number of people employed under provincial jurisdiction, as retrieved from the Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey 2008 to 2017.

    Occupational disease fatalities—Top sectors

    Top sectors—Occupational disease fatality counts (and rates per 100,000) for schedule 1
    Select sectors* 2011-13 2012-14 2013-15 2014-16 2015-17 2017 Only
    Construction 42 (13.17) 45 (12.79) 44 (11.66) 42 (10.82) 40 (9.97) 40 (9.46)
    Manufacturing 26 (2.86) 24 (2.55) 22 (2.37) 20 (2.14) 18 (1.85) 14 (1.41)
    Municipal 7 (18.86) 6 (16.10) 7 (16.86) 8 (19.24) 12 (29.08) 16 (36.71)
    Mining 8 (27.18) 8 (28.40) 10 (33.40) 9 (31.36) 8 (29.17) 7 (24.69)
    Primary metals 12 (38.58) 13 (42.71) 12 (39.13) 13 (41.76) 12 (39.84) 13 (43.57)
    All sectors: WSIB occupational disease fatality rates for Ontario: Schedule 1 133 (3.13) 130 (2.99) 127 (2.86) 121 (2.67) 119 (2.56) 121 (2.56)

    Sources

    • By the Numbers: 2017 Workplace Safety and Insurance Board Statistical Report Schedule 1.
    • Workplace Safety and Insurance Board Day of Mourning Fatalities Report: 2011 to 2017.

    Note

    Selected sectors are those with high fatality rates or counts. Rates are per 100,000 Workplace Safety and Insurance Board covered employment and are calculated based on the number of Workplace Safety and Insurance Board allowed fatalities (year of death) divided by Workplace Safety and Insurance Board covered employment by industry sectors.

    Small business

    Small businesses as share of total traumatic fatalities, allowed lost-time injury claims and employment (schedule 1)
    Category 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
    WSIB allowed traumatic fatalities (year of incident) 61.7% 67.8% 71.7% 50.8% 65.6% 64.6% 71.9% 50.9% 61.8% 51.6%
    WSIB allowed lost-time claims (year of injury/illness) 28.2% 29.1% 29.6% 29.9% 30.1% 31.5% 31.7% 32.9% 31.6% 30.6%
    Small businesses: Share of total employment 26.8% 27.7% 27.6% 27.1% 26.8% 27.4% 27.4% 27.2% 27.6% 27.2%

    Source

    Workplace Safety and Insurance Board database. Data extracted by the Ministry of Labour. May not exactly match published WSIB data.

    Violence and harassment

    Total violence and harassment- allowed lost-time injuries for schedule 1 and schedule 2
    Year 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
    Total violence and harassment schedule 1—health care 627 670 693 650 615 636 676 747 804 846
    Total violence and harassment schedule 1—services 176 180 167 141 142 140 130 128 148 188
    Violence and harassment Schedule 1 - Other 258 236 242 212 197 200 223 218 283 288
    Violence and harassment—schedule 2 1,053 999 1,109 1,079 1,040 1,100 1,161 1,263 1,521 1,732
    Violence and harassment claims share of total lost-time claims 2.70% 3.22% 3.67% 3.67% 3.59% 3.81% 4.08% 4.57% 4.80% 5.13%

    Source

    Workplace Safety and Insurance Board database. Data extracted by the Ministry of Labour. May not exactly match published WSIB data.

    Note

    Includes “assaults, violent acts, harassment and acts of war or terrorism”. See WSIB’s Open Data downloads page for the source.

    Data limitations and methodology

    The occupational health and safety data in this report is limited by:

    • Ministry of Labour enforcement data may change because of ongoing enforcement activities and investigations.
    • Critical injuries include only those that have been reported to the ministry. The ministry investigates workers covered by the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). Critical injuries in the ministry’s database may also include non-workers. If a non-worker is involved in a workplace incident, this must be part of the report. This information represents what was reported to the ministry and may not represent actual events at the workplace. In September 2016 the ministry clarified the legal definition of a critical injury to include fractures of the wrist, hand, ankle, foot, multiple fingers and toes. This clarification, along with a ministry awareness campaign, increased the number of critical injuries reported beginning in 2017.
    • The ministry tracks and reports fatalities at workplaces covered by the OHSA. This excludes deaths from natural causes, death of non-workers, suicides, death as a result of a criminal act or a traffic accident (unless the OHSA is involved) and death from occupational exposures that occurred many years ago.
    • This report is accurate as of the date that data was extracted. Additional records could be added to the source databases after extraction and would not be included.