The above report provides a summary of Australian workers’ compensation statistics for the 2012–13 financial year, including trends over time and an overview of time lost and compensation paid. A serious claim is a workers’ compensation claim for an incapacity that results in a total absence from work of one working week or more.

Preliminary data show there were 117 815 serious workers’ compensation claims in 2012–13, which equates to 11.1 claims per 1000 employees and 6.7 claims per million hours worked.

Injuries & musculoskeletal disorders led to 90% of serious claims in 2012–13 and the most common type was Traumatic joint/ligament & muscle/tendon injury (45%). Diseases led to 10% of serious claims and the most common type was Mental disorders (6%).

Muscular stress while lifting or handling objects caused 33% of serious claims in 2012–13p, while falls, trips & slips of a person caused 22% of serious claims. The back was the location on the body most often injured, accounting for 22% of all serious claims in 2012–13p. Other common locations were the hand, fingers & thumb (13%), shoulder (10%) and knee (9%).

Employees working as Labourers had the highest incidence rate of serious claims of all occupations in 2012–13: 27.0 serious claims per 1000 employees, more than twice the national rate. Machinery operators & drivers made 24.4 serious claims per 1000 employees. Older workers have higher median time lost from work and higher median compensation paid for their serious claims than younger workers.