Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
Symbol of the Government of Canada

Labour

www.labour.gc.ca

Occupational Injuries and Diseases in Canada, 1996 – 2008

I. Highlights

The following are the major highlights of the data that is presented in this statistical report.

  • In Canada, over the period 1996 to 2008, an average of slightly less than one million occupational injury claims have been reported each year by provincial or territorial WCBs.
  • On average, just under 400,000 (355,318) applications were accepted for compensation for a loss of wages (as “time-loss” injuries).
  • The incidence rate of time-loss injuries per 100 workers across all jurisdictions in Canada has steadily declined in all years since 1996 (with the exception of 2000 only).
  • One Canadian worker out of every 46 workers covered by provincial or territorial compensation systems was injured severely enough to miss at least one day of work in 2008. This represents approximately one compensated time-loss injury for every two minutes worked.
  • In Canada, in 2008, there were approximately three occupational fatalities each day of the year . Also in 2008, approximately one worker out of every 13,805 workers covered by provincial or territorial compensation systems died from an occupational injury.
  • Over the 1996 to 2008 period, compensation payments to injured workers, after adjusting for inflation, have generally shown an increasing trend.
  • In 2008, the WCBs paid $7.67 billion in benefit payments, or an average of approximately $24,845 per each new compensated (“accepted”) time-loss injury or fatality.
  • In addition, the WCBs paid $2.03 billion in health care and vocational rehabilitation payments in 2008. Including these costs, the total direct annual costs of occupational injuries and fatalities to the Canadian economy were approximately $9.7 billion in 2008.
  • Factoring in direct and indirect costs, the total costs of occupational injuries to the Canadian economy, can now be estimated to be more than $19 billion annually.
  • The four provinces with the highest 2008 derived compensation quotients, (see “definitions and glossary”), per accepted time-loss injury or fatality, were: Ontario, at $42,792, Newfoundland and Labrador, at $30,008; Nova Scotia at $29,887 and New Brunswick at $28,625.
  • Derived 2008 compensation quotients were lowest in the Western provinces (Manitoba, Saskatchewan, British Columbia and Alberta), all of which were considerably lower than the Canadian average in 2008.

Footer

Date Modified:
2012-03-14