Injury Statistics Work-related Claims: 2015

Transcription

1 Injury Statistics Work-related Claims: 2015 Embargoed until 10:45am 28 November 2016 Key facts Provisional data shows that in 2015: 230,200 claims were made to ACC for a work-related injury with 31,000 of these for entitlement (ie more serious) claims. The overall rate of injury claims was 110 claims for every 1,000 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). The fishing industry and the transport, postal, and warehouse industry had the highest numbers of entitlement claims as a proportion of all claims within the industry both with 21 percent. People working in elementary occupations had the highest incidence rate by occupation 238 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Males had the most claims for fatal work-related injuries, with 92 percent of fatal claims. Workers aged years, and workers aged 65 years and over, had the highest claim rates across all age groups. Trends data for shows that: The number of claims has been steadily decreasing since 2005, but has been increasing slightly each year since From the incidence rate fell each year (from 158 claims per 1,000 FTEs in 2002 to 111 in 2012). However, this trend has slowed since then to remain around 111 claims per 1,000 FTEs. The agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry had the highest incidence rate in 2015 with 206 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Since 2014, this industry has had the highest claim rate, overtaking the arts and recreation services industry, which had the highest rate between 2009 and Since 2002, the incidence rate has been consistently higher for self-employed workers than for employees. In 2015, the incidence rate was 147 claims per 1,000 FTEs for self-employed people, compared with 106 claims for employees. Agriculture and fishery workers and those in elementary occupations have often had the two highest claim rates since trends started in Just under one quarter of workers in both occupations made a work-related claim in Liz MacPherson, Government Statistician ISSN X 28 November 2016 Updated 7 December 2016, see the 'Corrections' tab for details.

2 Commentary Background to the data 230,200 work-related injury claims in 2015 Claim rates and number of claims higher for males year age group makes most claims Pacific peoples have highest claim rate of the four major ethnic groups, but lowest number of claims Claim rates for Māori across the four highest occupations differ from the order of rates for overall population Claim rates highest for elementary occupations and the agriculture, forestry, and fishery industry Number of claims highest for trades workers and the manufacturing industry Claim rates lowest in Wellington and Auckland Trend data shows claims continue to increase, but claim rate steady Proportion of claims made by males declines; claim rate for 65+ age group falls Trends show elementary occupations and agriculture and fishery workers have consistently high claim rates Claim rates consistently highest for self-employed, but gap narrowing All regions show downward trend in claims Background to the data These figures are for claims accepted by the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) for work-related injuries. They are not a definitive count of all work-related injuries, because not all injuries result in a claim to ACC. From 2015, Accredited Employers Programme (AEP) claims have been included in this data. The ACC Accredited Employers Programme entitles employers who meet certain criteria to manage their employee s work related injuries on ACC s behalf by taking full responsibility for delivering all statutory entitlements, such as weekly compensation for lost earnings. In return, employers are entitled to a levy discount. The statistics are based on one claim per person for each injury event during the calendar year. For example, if someone made two claims for the same shoulder injury then only one is included. However, if someone made two claims for two separate injury events, such as a shoulder injury and an ankle injury, then both are included. This release covers information about claims for work-related injuries, as well as information about claims involving entitlement payments, and claims for fatal injuries. It contains the latest results provisional statistics for 2015 and final statistics for These figures include claims due to occupational disease and work-related gradual process (eg hearing loss). This commentary focuses on the provisional statistics for 2015, and then looks at trends in workrelated injuries for For the first time in 2016 we include provisional data in the trends data. Note: claims for injuries that occurred in 2015 can still be updated, so the numbers can change. Within this commentary we report on: 2

3 incidence rates the number of claims per 1,000 full-time equivalent employees (FTEs), which indicate the risk associated with different groups total number of claims, which provides an indication of total size of the problem entitlement claims, which reflects the number of more serious injuries number of fatal claims. The incidence rates were calculated using updated full-time equivalent employee estimates from the Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS) HLFS redevelopment and incidence rates has more information. 230,200 work-related injury claims in 2015 Provisionally, there were 230,200 claims for work-related injuries that occurred in the 2015 calendar year. This is up from 226,900 claims finalised for The 2015 claims were made by 204,000 people. The provisional incidence rate for 2015 was 110 work-related injury claims per 1,000 FTEs. This compares with 111 claims per 1,000 FTEs finalised in Of all work-related claims, 13 percent (31,000) resulted in entitlement payments. This includes payments for weekly compensation and rehabilitation necessary for returning to independence. Claim rates and number of claims higher for males In 2015, 71 percent of all work-related injury claims (162,800 claims) were for males. Their incidence rate (140 claims per 1,000 FTEs) was approximately twice as high as for females (73 claims per 1,000 FTEs). Males made noticeably more entitlement claims (22,700 claims) than females did (8,400 claims). Almost three-quarters (73 percent) of entitlement claims made in 2015 were for males. Their rate (19 claims per 1,000 FTEs) was more than double that for females (9 claims per 1,000 FTEs). Seventy-two claims were made for fatal work-related injuries in Of these claims, 92 percent were for males. Workers aged 65+ accounted for 58 percent of all fatal claims. Note that fatalities are under-represented by claims, as some fatalities do not necessarily result in a fatal injury claim to ACC year age group makes most claims In 2015, workers aged years made 49,300 claims (21 percent of all claims). This was followed by workers aged who made 47,600 claims, also around 21 percent of all claims. Older workers (65+) had the lowest number of claims, consistent with the demographic structure of the working-age population. 3

4 The highest claim rate was for the youngest workers (aged years), at 143 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Workers aged 65 years and older (65+) had the second-highest claim rate (131 claims per 1,000 FTEs). 4

5 Workers aged 65+ had the highest incidence rate of entitlement claims (30 entitlement claims per 1,000 FTEs). Workers aged had the next-highest rates (17 per 1,000 FTEs). Number of entitlement claims highest for workers aged As for all work-related claims, in 2015, workers aged made more entitlement claims than any other age group did, with 6,800 claims. This was 22 percent of all entitlement claims. Workers aged 65+ made the fewest, with 3,100 claims (10 percent). 5

6 Pacific peoples have highest claim rate of the four major ethnic groups, but lowest number of claims The rates for work-related injury claims in 2015 for the four major ethnic groups were: Pacific peoples 103 claims per 1,000 FTEs Māori 101 claims per 1,000 FTEs European 86 claims per 1,000 FTEs Asian 62 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Work-related claims by selected ethnic groups, 2015 (provisional) Ethnicity Number of claims Percentage of all work-related claims European 135, Māori 24, Asian 16,100 7 Pacific peoples 11,600 5 Note: Percentages will not sum to 100 because 'other' and 'not specified' categories are not included here. See Ethnic group reporting for more information on totals for ethnicity. Source: Statistics New Zealand 6

7 Claim rates for Māori across the four highest occupations differ from the order of rates for overall population In the 2013 Census, 15 percent of the population identified as being of Māori ethnicity. In 2015, the HLFS estimated 12 percent of the total labour force were of Māori ethnicity. However, Māori accounted for 24,400 claims in 2015, which is 11 percent of all claims for workrelated injuries. Males were responsible for 17,800 of these claims. The claim rate for Māori in 2015 was 101 claims per 1,000 FTEs, compared with 110 for the overall population. Māori made 11 percent of claims involving entitlement payments (3,600 entitlement claims). Males made 2,800 of these claims. The highest proportion of entitlement claims came from people of European ethnicity, at 55 percent. The entitlement claim rate for Māori and the overall population in 2015 was the same (15 claims per 1,000 FTEs for each). In 2015, Māori made six claims for fatal work-related injuries (8 percent of fatal work-related injury claims). For Māori, the year age group had the highest rate of work-related claims, at 118 claims per 1,000 FTEs. The lowest rate was for the year age group, at 90 claims per 1,000 FTEs. For the overall population, the age group with the highest rate of claims was also the year age group, consistent with the result for Māori. However, the year age group had the lowest claim rate within the overall population. Agriculture and fishery workers had the highest incidence rate for Māori of any occupation group (216 work-related injury claims per 1,000 FTEs). The lowest rate was for clerks, who had a rate of 27 claims per 1,000 FTEs. 7

8 The claim rates for Māori across the occupation groups generally follow the same pattern as for the overall population, except for the four highest categories, which follow a different order to that seen for the overall population. This can be seen in the graph 'Incidence rate of work-related injury claims, by occupation'. Claim rates highest for elementary occupations and the agriculture, forestry, and fishing industry Occupation claim rates Occupation describes the injured person s job at the time of their injury. Elementary occupations (eg, cleaners, refuse collectors, pest controllers or couriers), had the highest incidence rate, with 238 work-related injury claims per 1,000 FTEs in The nexthighest rates were for: agriculture (including forestry) and fishery workers 233 claims per 1,000 FTEs trades workers (eg builders) 201 claims per 1,000 FTEs. 8

9 The lowest rates were for clerks and professionals, who had 35 and 40 claims per 1,000 FTEs, respectively. In 2015, elementary occupations had the highest incidence rate for entitlement claims, at 40 per 1,000 FTEs. Plant and machine operators and assemblers had the second-highest rate (36 entitlement claims per 1,000 FTEs). Industry claim rates Industry describes the main type of activity carried out by the organisation that the injured person worked for. This differs from occupation, which describes the injured person's job at the time of their injury. For example, a plumber could be a trades worker in the construction industry. It is important to note that the industry of the workplace where the injury occurred was not specified for 10 percent of claims (22,200 claims). In 2015, the highest incidence rates were for: agriculture, forestry, and fishing 206 claims per 1,000 FTEs arts and recreation services 194 claims per 1,000 FTEs construction 163 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Note: arts and recreation services include professional sporting activities and adventure sports. 9

10 The industries with the highest rates of work-related entitlement claims in 2015 were: agriculture, forestry, and fishing 31 entitlement claims per 1,000 FTEs manufacturing 27 claims transport, postal, and warehousing 26 claims. Number of claims highest for trades workers and manufacturing industry Occupation claim numbers The occupation groups with the most work-related injury claims in 2015 were: trades workers 40,100 claims plant and machine operators and assemblers 33,000 claims agriculture and fishery workers 31,700 claims. Claims by males outnumbered those by females in most occupation groups, except for: professionals (60 percent of claims were made by females) 10

11 service and sales workers (58 percent of claims were made by females) clerks (56 percent of claims were made by females). A high proportion of the workers in the three occupation groups with the highest number of workrelated injury claims were males. Males made: 98 percent of all claims by trades workers 88 percent of all claims by plant and machine operators and assemblers 78 percent of all claims by agriculture and fishery workers. Entitlement claims in 2015 were highest for these occupation groups: plant and machine operators and assemblers (6,000 claims) trades workers (4,900 claims) agriculture and fishery workers (4,200 claims) elementary occupations (4,200 claims). Combined, these groups accounted for over 60 percent of all entitlement claims. Industry claim numbers Work-related claims in 2015 were highest for workers in the following industries: manufacturing 38,500 claims construction 34,300 claims agriculture, forestry, and fishing 25,600 claims. However, forestry and fishing accounted for just 1,700 of the broader industry's total claims, with 1,000 and 700 claims, respectively. Mining had the fewest work-related claims (500). This is probably because of the relatively small number of workers in this industry. In 2015, the manufacturing industry had the highest number of entitlement claims, with 6,600 claims. However, the fishing industry and the transport, postal, and warehousing industry had the highest proportion of entitlement claims as a proportion of all claims within the industry. For both of these industries, this type of claim made up 21 percent of claims made in each industry. This is compared with 13 percent across all industries. Claim rate much higher for self-employed Employment status indicates whether a worker was self-employed or an employee at the time of their injury. Comparing these two groups shows that: employees accounted for 87 percent of all work-related claims in 2015 the incidence rate was much higher for self-employed workers (147 claims per 1,000 FTEs) than for employees (106 claims per 1,000 FTEs). 11

12 Claim rates lowest in Wellington and Auckland The regions with the highest incidence rates in 2015 were: Gisborne/Hawke s Bay 151 claims per 1,000 FTEs Northland 141 claims per 1,000 FTEs Tasman/Nelson/Marlborough/West Coast 136 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Wellington had the lowest rate (72 claims per 1,000 FTEs). Auckland had the second-lowest (95 claims per 1,000 FTEs). In 2015, the Auckland region had the most claims with 67,800 claims (29 percent of all claims), reflecting the large size of the region's population. Canterbury (36,000 claims) and Waikato (22,700 claims) were second and third respectively, reflecting the high number of FTEs in these regions. However, Wellington, the third-largest region in terms of FTEs, had the fifth highest number of claims (17,200 claims 7 percent of the country s work-related claims). This lower level may reflect the different composition of occupation and industry within the Wellington region. In 2015, the highest entitlement claim rates (all with 20 claims per 1,000 FTEs) were in: Northland Gisborne/Hawke s Bay Manawatu-Wanganui. 12

13 The fourth-highest rate of entitlement claims was in Canterbury (19 claims per 1,000 FTEs). The following regions all had 18 entitlement claims per 1,000 FTEs: Taranaki Tasman/Nelson/Marlborough/West Coast Otago/Southland. Apart from Wellington and Auckland, all regions had entitlement claim rates between 16 and 20 per 1,000 FTEs. The Wellington region again had the lowest rate, with 10 entitlement claims per 1,000 FTEs. Auckland had the highest number of entitlement claims (7,800), accounting for 25 percent of the total. However, this region had the second-lowest incidence rate, at 11 claims per 1,000 FTEs. Trend data shows claims continue to increase, but claim rate steady The number of work-related claims increased steadily between 2002 and In 2006, the number decreased, and this trend continued until This changed in 2013, when for the first time in eight years the number of claims increased. This increase has continued through to

14 The incidence rate decreased each year since 2002, from 158 work-related claims per 1,000 FTEs in 2002 to 111 claims per 1,000 FTEs in However, this trend slowed down in recent years, with the rate remaining around 111 work-related claims per 1,000 FTEs in 2013 and 2014 and at 110 claims per 1,000 FTEs in Proportion of claims made by males declines; claim rate for 65+ age group falls Trends for males and females Males have consistently dominated the number of claims by accounting for approximately threequarters of all work-related claims each year between 2002 and However, the proportion 14

15 of claims made by males has decreased over time, from 75 percent in 2002 to 71 percent in This proportion has remained consistent through to Each year, males also had a higher incidence rate than females. The rate for males decreased from 203 claims per 1,000 FTEs in 2002 to 143 in The rate for females also decreased over this period, from 95 claims per 1,000 FTEs in 2002 to 72 in Provisional data for 2015 as at 15 August 2016 shows a decrease for males (140 claims per 1,000 FTEs), and a slight increase for females at 73 claims per 1,000 FTEs. These rates can still change as more claims are filed and updated. However, the incidence rate for males has decreased between 2002 to 2015 more than for females by 31 percent, compared with 23 percent for females. Trends for age groups The 65+ age group consistently had the highest claim rate from 2002 until However, in 2011 the rate fell below that for year-olds. This was due to a significant drop in the number of claims for occupational disease and gradual process injury among the 65+ age group. The drop in the 65+ age group is most noticeable between 2009 and 2011 where the rate fell from 194 to 130 claims per 1,000 FTEs during the two-year period. 15

16 In 2015, the year age group had the highest claim rate, at 143 work-related claims per 1,000 FTEs. The incidence rate of claims has generally declined for almost all age groups since However, since 2011 this decline has slowed down or levelled off. Between 2002 and 2007, workers aged made the most claims each year. In 2008, as claims for this group dropped, their claims equalled those of workers aged From 2009 onwards, the year age group consistently had the highest number of claims. This trend continued through to 2013, with these two age groups being responsible for the most claims each year. However, our most recent data for 2014 and provisionally for 2015 shows that the year age group has now become the group with the second highest amount of claims. In 2015, 49,300 claims were made in the year age group, and 47,600 in the year age group. 16

17 Trends show elementary occupations and agriculture and fishery workers have consistently high claim rates In 2002, elementary occupations had the highest claim rate (363 claims per 1,000 FTEs). Despite dropping in 2003, this rate continued to be the highest through to However, the rate dropped further in 2008, when agriculture and fishery workers had the highest claim rate (294 claims per 1,000 FTEs). Agriculture and fishery workers continued to have the highest rate between 2008 and 2014, although the rate has been dropping and has slowed down in recent years. Provisional data for 2015 shows that elementary occupations have overtaken agriculture and fishery workers as having the highest claim rate (238 claims per 1,000 FTEs), but this could change again once the data is finalised. 17

18 Claim rates consistently highest for self-employed, but gap narrowing The incidence rate for self-employed workers has been higher than that for employed workers each year since In 2014, the incidence rate was 149 claims per 1,000 FTEs for selfemployed people, and 107 for employees. The smallest difference between the two groups was in 2012, where the rate for self-employed was around 40 claims per 1,000 FTEs higher than for employees. In 2015, provisional data shows this remains similar, with a rate of 106 for employees and 147 for self-employed workers. Employees consistently accounted for more than four-fifths (varies between 81 to 87 percent) of all work-related claims each year between 2002 and This proportion has been increasing gradually since In 2015, HLFS estimated that employees/employers formed 90 percent of employed people. Employees made 86 percent of work-related claims in 2014, and provisional 2015 data shows an increase to 87 percent. While self-employed workers formed 10 percent of employed people (HLFS estimates), they made 14 percent of work-related claims in 2014, and 13 percent in 2015 provisionally. All regions show downward trend in claims Incidence rates decreased overall throughout the regions between 2002 and However, the decrease has slowed since 2012 and in recent years we can see slight increases in some regions. Data for the four largest regions (Auckland, Waikato, Wellington, and Canterbury) shows the declining trend. However, we also see a slight rise in incidence rate in Waikato in 2012, and the effect of the 2011 Canterbury earthquakes can be seen for the region in the 2011 data when the incidence rate rose to

19 The number of claims by workers in all regions declined overall between 2002 and 2015, consistent with how overall trend numbers have been falling. However, provisional data for 2015 shows an increase in claims for the Auckland region from 64,900 in 2014 to 67,800 in This is the only region showing an increase in number of claims since the start of the trend, but this could change when the 2015 data is finalised. The biggest difference in the number of claims has been in the Otago and Southland region. In 2002 there were 24,800 claims in this region, which decreased to 18,900 claims in 2014 and provisionally 19,300 in 2015 data. Despite having one of the country's smaller populations, this region had the fourth-highest number of claims in both 2014 and 2015, and an incidence rate of 128 claims per 1,000 FTEs in For more detailed data see the Excel tables in the 'Downloads' box. Page updated 7 December 2016, see the 'Corrections' tab for details. 19

20 Definitions About Injury Statistics Work-related Claims Injury Statistics Work-related Claims measures claims accepted by ACC for work-related injuries. The statistics are based on the number of claims rather than the number of people who claimed. They are based on one claim for each person for each injury event. The information covers all claims for work-related injuries, including claims involving entitlement payments (where compensation and support for returning to independence may have been required), and claims for fatal injuries. The data in this information release is not a definitive count of all work-related injuries. This is because not all work-related injuries result in a claim to ACC. See Data quality for more information. This data is used for monitoring the number and incidence of work-related injuries in New Zealand, and informing policy on reducing work-related injuries. Definition of terms Accident: the Accident Compensation Act 2001 (section 25) defines accident as: a specific event, or a series of events, that involves the application of a force (including gravity) or resistance external to the human body, or involves the sudden movement of the body to avoid such a force or resistance external to the human body, or a twisting movement of the body the inhalation or oral ingestion of any solid, liquid, gas, or foreign object on a specific occasion, which kind of occurrence does not include the inhalation or ingestion of a virus, bacterium, protozoa, or fungi unless that inhalation or ingestion is the result of the criminal act of a person other than the injured person a burn, or exposure to radiation or rays of any kind, on a specific occasion, which kind of occurrence does not include a burn or exposure caused by exposure to the elements the absorption of any chemical through the skin any exposure to the elements, or to extremes of temperature or environment. Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC): this agency administers New Zealand s accident compensation scheme, which provides no-fault personal injury cover for all New Zealand citizens and residents, and visitors to New Zealand. The ACC scheme is governed by the Accident Compensation Act An ACC claim is made when treatment for an injury is first sought from any recognised health professional, such as a doctor, a physiotherapist, or a dentist. Claims that are accepted by the ACC are divided into different categories for funding purposes. Only those claims involving employees injured in work-related activities are included in this release. Customers, visitors, or bystanders injured at a workplace, who are not employees of that employer, are not included in the count unless they were performing work-related duties on behalf of their employer. See Work-related claims for more information. Accredited employers: The ACC Accredited Employers Programme (AEP) entitles employers who meet certain criteria to manage their employee s work-related injuries on ACC s behalf by 20

21 taking full responsibility for providing all statutory entitlements, such as weekly compensation for lost earnings. In return, employers are entitled to levy discounts, which can be substantial. At the end of an agreed claims management period, if an injured employee is still receiving entitlements, financial and management responsibility for the claim is transferred back to ACC. These accredited employers must submit the status of claims that they (or their designated administrators) manage to ACC once a month. Age: specifies the injured person s age in years, as at the date of injury. This age may differ from the worker s age when the claim is lodged, the age when compensation is received, or the age at death (if the worker dies of the injury). Body site of injury: the part or parts of the body injured in the accident. Claim: a lodgement by a person or care provider requesting that ACC assists through paying for, or helping to pay for, medical costs, weekly compensation, and/or rehabilitation costs associated with an injury. A person can have more than one ACC claim. All claims registered by ACC are categorised according to the type of services the claimant goes on to receive. Two main categories of claim are used in this release. See Claims for medical fees only, and Claims involving entitlement payments for details. Claims for medical fees only: claims for which ACC has paid a health professional for medical treatment or service. Approximately 90 percent of all ACC claims are in this category and often involve only one or two visits to a health professional. A claim is deemed to be a 'medical fee only' claim if the person has only received medical or dental treatment, or counselling. Claims involving entitlement payments: claims that have progressed past the medical fees only claim category. Compensation and support for returning to independence may have been required. Under the Accident Compensation Act 2001 (section 69), entitlements are: rehabilitation, comprising treatment, social rehabilitation, and vocational rehabilitation weekly compensation lump sum compensation for permanent impairment funeral grants, survivors grants, weekly compensation for the spouse or partner, children and other dependants of a deceased claimant, and childcare payments. Claims for fatal work-related injuries: see Fatal injury claims. Diagnosis of injury/illness/disease: the type of injury, illness, or disease sustained by the worker, and recorded on the ACC claim by the treatment provider. This release reports the primary injury diagnosis as held in the ACC claims database. Employed (HLFS definition): people in the working-age population who, during the HLFS reference week, did one of the following: 1. worked for one hour or more for pay or profit in the context of an employee/employer relationship or self-employment 21

22 2. worked without pay for one hour or more in work which contributed directly to the operation of a farm, business, or professional practice owned or operated by a relative 3. had a job but were not at work due to: own illness or injury, personal or family responsibilities, bad weather or mechanical breakdown, direct involvement in an industrial dispute, or leave or holiday. Employment status: indicates whether a worker is self-employed (that is, working for themselves), or is an employee (working for another person or entity). The employment status figures cover all those working for wages and salaries. The selfemployed figures include those classified as self-employed and not employing others, but exclude those working without pay or profit in a family business. While this differs from the definition in the Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS), it corresponds closely to definitions used for workplace accident insurance. Entitlement payments: see Claims involving entitlement payments. Ethnic group: a self-identified variable that measures cultural affiliation and is distinct from terms such as race, ancestry, nationality, or citizenship. An individual may identify their ethnicity according to a number of characteristics including: a common name one or more elements of common culture which may include religion, customs, or language unique community of interests, feelings, and actions a shared sense of common origins a common geographic origin. An individual may identify as a member of more than one ethnic group. Fatal injury claims: claims made to ACC for deaths that resulted from workplace injuries (for example, a fatal work-related fall) or occupational diseases resulting in death, such as asbestosrelated illnesses. Fatal accidents are referred to Coronial Services to determine the cause of death. The cause of death is official only when the coroner publishes their finding, which can take up to two years. In some cases, an underlying medical condition such as a heart attack may be the cause of the accident and therefore this would not be covered under ACC legislation. The Coroner can take up to 2 years to review a specific case before ACC can make a final decision. Therefore, a fatal claim in 2015 could potentially only be finalised in 2017 and will only be included in the 2015 statistics if the claim was finalised in time for reporting to Statistics NZ. Fatal injury payments: if someone dies as a result of an injury, ACC may help cover financial needs. Payments may include funeral grants, survivor grants, childcare payments, and weekly compensation for wages. These payments are paid to the deceased s next of kin. Final figures: for the purposes of this release claims are included in the tables under the calendar year in which the injury occurred. For final figures, claims are only included if they were accepted by 15 August Claims for fatal work-related injuries take up to two years to be finalised. 22

23 Please note that some ACC claims for a given year may not be represented in the statistics for that year because of the date of reporting. Claims could be reported at a later date due to late submission or may be more complex and require specialist assessments that take time to determine whether the accident is covered by ACC. Therefore, the claim would only be included in the data if it had been finalised in time for reporting to Statistics NZ. Otherwise, claims of this nature would be included in the statistics at a later date and may cause a slight change in estimates for the given year. Full-time equivalent employees (FTEs): a standard measure used in labour force statistics, for example, to calculate average weekly earnings. FTEs are calculated as the number of full-time employees plus half the number of part-time employees. We use FTEs instead of total number of employees for calculating the incidence rate, as parttime employees have a lower exposure to work-related injury because they work fewer hours than full-time employees. This allows the denominator of the incidence rate to be expressed as units that each have approximately the same risk of work-related injury. The FTE numbers used in this release are annual averages derived from the Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS), and are used to calculate injury incidence rates by age, sex, ethnic group, employment status, industry, occupation, and region where the injury occurred. Geographic region: the part of New Zealand or the world where the injury event took place. The physical address or place of the injury event is classified according to the territorial authority (TA) in which it occurred. TAs are grouped into regions of New Zealand. There is an additional group of codes for injuries that occurred outside New Zealand. The regions reported in this release mostly align with regional council boundaries, but in a few cases TAs straddle these council boundaries. We have assigned these TAs to the region containing the greatest proportion of their population. The TAs involved are Waitomo, Taupō, Rotorua, Stratford, Rangitikei, Tararua, and Waitaki districts. Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS): Statistics NZ s quarterly HLFS produces statistics on the employed, unemployed, and those not in the labour force. The target population of the HLFS is the civilian, usually resident, non-institutionalised population aged 15 years and over. It therefore excludes: people in non-private dwellings such as hospitals and prisons visitors from overseas who are staying for less than 12 months the armed forces overseas diplomats in New Zealand people living on offshore islands (except Waiheke Island). The HLFS provides the FTE figures we use in this release to calculate incidence rates (see Fulltime equivalent employees for more detail). Impairment: ACC defines impairment as any loss or abnormality of psychological, physiological, or anatomical structure or function. Level of impairment is used by ACC to determine eligibility for, and amount of, lump sum and independence allowance entitlements (see Permanent impairment assessment for more details). Incidence rate: the number of work-related claims per 1,000 FTEs. 23

24 The incidence rate is used to compare levels of injury and fatal injury claims between groups with different numbers of workers. This rate is used by the International Labour Organization to enable comparisons of work-related injuries between countries. Independence allowance: a quarterly payment made to compensate a claimant for any longterm impairment they have as a result of an injury. The injured person must have a permanent impairment assessment resulting in an impairment level of 10 percent or more to be eligible for the independence allowance (see Permanent impairment assessment for more details). Industry: the type of activity carried out by the organisation, enterprise, business, or unit of economic activity that the injured person worked in. The Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC), New Zealand Version 2006 (Version 1.0) is used to classify each business by industry. Injury: the Accident Compensation Act 2001 (section 26), defines a personal injury as: death a physical injury, or mental injury caused by a physical injury mental injury caused by a criminal act of another person work-related mental injury that is suffered by a person through witnessing a sudden traumatic event at work (added from 1 October 2008) damage to dentures or prostheses that replace a part of the human body. The Act 2001 also covers work-related gradual process, disease, or infection (see Work-related gradual process, disease, or infection for more details). Labour force: members of the working-age population, who, during the HLFS survey reference week, were classified as 'employed' or 'unemployed. Loss of earnings compensation: formerly termed weekly compensation payments, these are payments ACC makes to claimants who cannot work because of injury. The payment is based on 80 percent of weekly income before the injury occurred and compensates for loss of earnings (or potential earnings), until a certain point determined by ACC. A spouse, partner, or dependant of a deceased claimant may be entitled to loss of earnings compensation. Note that the employer covers the first week and ACC covers the second and following weeks. Lump sum compensation: a one-off non-taxable payment to compensate for permanent impairment resulting from an injury. This payment covers injuries that occurred on or after 1 April The injured person must have a permanent impairment assessment resulting in an impairment rating of 10 percent or more to be eligible for a lump sum payment (see Permanent impairment assessment for more details). Mental injury: the Accident Compensation Act 2001 defines mental injury as a clinically significant behavioural, cognitive, or psychological dysfunction. Occupation: all occupations in this release relate to the injured person s occupation at the time of injury. Occupation is classified according to the New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (NZSCO), 1995, Version

25 Permanent impairment assessment: assessments for lump sum and independence allowance payments are fully funded by ACC and completed by an independent medical practitioner. They determine the amount of compensation, based on the level of permanent impairment sustained from the injury. Level of impairment is assessed using the American Medical Association Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment, fourth edition. It is an estimate of the proportion of the activities of daily living, such as eating or personal hygiene, that an average person is unable to do as a result of their injury. The level of permanent impairment must be 10 percent or more to be eligible for an entitlement. Examples at different impairment levels include: 0 to 5 percent impairment: common lower back injury (not eligible for an entitlement) 10 percent impairment: severe damage to the ligaments of the knee (would be eligible for an entitlement) 32 percent impairment: amputation of the leg below the knee (would be eligible for an entitlement) 80 percent or more impairment: paraplegia (would be eligible for maximum entitlement). Provisional figures: all claims are included under the calendar year when the injury occurred. For 2015 data, provisional figures are as at 15 August Final figures for 2015 data will be released in Claims for fatal work-related injuries can take up to two years to be finalised. Rehabilitation: ACC defines rehabilitation as a process of active change and support to help a person with an injury to regain his or her health and independence, and therefore the ability to participate in his or her usual activities, as far as is practicable. Rehabilitation payments: these are payments made to claimants to support their rehabilitation. These payments include compensation for treatment, counselling, travel and accommodation for treatment, childcare, attendant care, equipment, and home modifications. Scene of injury: describes the location where the injury occurred. It includes homes, farms, and roads or streets. Weekly compensation payments: see Loss of earnings compensation. Work-related claims: claims made to ACC for work-related injuries. The injury can be either due to an accident event or have happened by gradual process related to the person s work (see Work-related gradual process, disease, or infection). The Accident Compensation Act 2001 (section 28(1)) defines a work-related injury as an injury which happens when the worker is: at his or her place of employment, including when the place moves (eg, a taxi driver), or is a place to or through which the worker moves having a rest or meal break at work travelling to or from work in transport provided by the employer, or travelling to or from work in order to receive treatment for a work-related injury. Please note that it is difficult to determine whether accidents that occur at farms are work-related or not, as the farm could be the home or the place of work of the injured person. If the injured person has a farming-related occupation, then the claim is usually considered work-related. 25

26 Work-related injuries are identified in the ACC claims dataset using the following technical criteria: any claim in the ACC work account, or any claim in the ACC motor-vehicle account with a work-related flag set to Y, or any claim in the ACC earners account with a work-related flag set to Y, or any claim with location farm by people with agricultural occupations (excluding nonearners and those involved in a sport or recreational activity). Only accepted claims are included. Claims identified as self-harm are excluded. Work-related gradual process, disease, or infection: includes changes to the body that develop slowly and progressively over time and result in personal injury, such as the effects of exposure to noise or fumes at a workplace or physical deterioration resulting from an activity you can carry out over the course of your work (such as keyboarding). Work-related gradual process is covered under the Accident Compensation Act 2001 (section 30). When determining a gradual process claim ACC considers the following key elements: whether the injury occurred over a period of four weeks or more whether a characteristic of the work environment has caused the personal injury whether the particular characteristic that has caused or contributed to the injury is present in the person s non-work environment whether the risk of personal injury is greater for people who work in the employment environment than those who do not. 26

27 Related links Next release Injury Statistics Work-related Claims: 2016 will be released in Subscribe to information releases, including this one, by completing the online subscription form. The release calendar lists all our upcoming information releases by date of release. Past releases Injury Statistics Work-related Claims has links to past releases. Related information The Injury Information Portal provides links to: published data reports information about injury data collected in New Zealand reports and articles about injury data websites of other agencies that produce injury information. 27

28 Data quality Period-specific information This section has information about data that has changed since the last release. Reference period Changes since the last release General information This section has information on data that has not changed between releases. Data sources Accuracy of the data Consistency with other periods or datasets Interpreting the data Classifications used in the information release Period-specific information Reference period This release contains provisional statistics for work-related claims for injuries in the 2015 calendar year. It also includes final statistics for injuries in the 2014 calendar year. Both of these are as reported by 15 August Changes since the last release Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS) redevelopment In 2016, the HLFS underwent a redevelopment, which has led to an overall increase in full-time equivalent (FTE) estimates. These FTE estimates are used to calculate the incidence rates in this release and it is expected that some rates will be lower because of the change. This needs to be taken into consideration when using rates from the release, as a decrease in rate may be due to the HLFS redevelopment rather than a real-life effect. Due to the new FTE estimates from the HLFS we have revised incidence rates back to 2002 See HLFS redevelopment effect on incidence rates for more information. Provisional data included in trends In 2016, for the first time, the trends tables and commentary include provisional data. This has been done to assist users with their analysis. However, please remember that claims for injuries that occurred in 2015 are provisional and can still be updated and filed. Therefore, the latest data may change when the numbers are finalised. Industry data for A problem was detected with the industry coding for data. Due to data quality concerns, we have stopped publishing industry estimates for the years affected until the problem can be corrected. This effects trends table 9. 28

29 Claims involving entitlement payments by employment status In 2016, for the first time, we have included a table for claims involving entitlement payments by employment status and sex. This has been produced for work-related injuries in 2015 and Previously, this table had been produced at the request of stakeholders but we've now added it into the release to make the data public. This is table numbered 13b. General information Data sources Data on claims for work-related injuries is from the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC). All claims are included under the calendar year when the injury occurred. The 2015 figures are provisional; final figures for 2015 will be published in Claims for fatal work-related injuries can take up to two years to be finalised. Figures for the number of FTEs are sourced from the HLFS and are used to calculate incidence rates. We also refer to figures from the 2013 Census and the HLFS within the commentary. Accuracy of the data Accredited Employers Programme (AEP) claims To increase the accuracy of work-related injury statistics, we include AEP claims in this release. Before 2015 we excluded them because of perceived data quality issues. However, this resulted in undercounting, as AEP claims are a substantial proportion of work-related claims. There are known data quality issues with these types of claims and we are reviewing this to improve future submissions from accredited employers to ACC. Age Age specifies an injured person's age at the date of injury. It is calculated using date of birth. This age may differ from the worker's age when the claim is lodged, the age when compensation is received, or the age at death (if the worker dies of the injury). We group data on work-related injuries for people aged 14 years and under into 'other and unspecified'. This is due to uncertainty about the ages recorded for people in this group. In previous years, claims by people aged 14 years and under were less than 1 percent of total claims. Body site of injury reporting The body site of the injury for claims submitted through ACC s Accredited Employer Programme has been categorised as unobtainable due to data quality issues. Claims involving treatment at hospital emergency departments Treatment lasting less than three hours, and provided at a hospital emergency department (ED), is bulk funded by ACC directly to the district health boards (DHBs) and is not recorded against 29

30 individual claims. As a result, claims involving treatment provided at the ED for less than three hours are not included in this release. Ethnic group reporting Ethnic group reporting uses total response for both the number of claims and the number of FTEs. Total response counts the injured person once in every ethnic group they identify with. For example, a person who identifies as being of Samoan, Tongan, and Māori ethnicities would be counted once in the Pacific peoples category and once in the Māori category. Counting individuals in more than one ethnic group means the sum of the ethnic groups is greater than the number of people. However, it also means that all ethnicities are counted and identified in a specific unambiguous ethnic group and that the relative size of the groups within the population is fairly represented. In this release, up to three separate ethnic groups can be reported for each claim. Any further ethnic groups reported are put in the 'other' ethnicity category. As multiple ethnicities are coded in the same manner by ACC and the HLFS, the numerator and denominator are consistent in the calculation of incidence rates. The ethnicity of people who submitted a claim through ACC s Accredited Employer Programme is categorised as not specified due to data quality issues. Fatal claims Fatal accidents are referred to Coronial Services to determine the cause of death. The cause of death is official only when the coroner publishes their finding, which can take up to two years. The assessment of a fatal claim requires the coroner to determine the cause of death because in some cases, an underlying medical condition such as a heart attack may be the cause of the accident and therefore the claim is not covered under ACC legislation. The coroner can take up to two years to review a specific case before ACC can make a final decision. A fatal claim in 2015 may therefore only be finalised in 2017 and will only be included in the 2015 statistics if the claim was finalised in time for reporting to Statistics NZ. Full-time equivalent employees Because we derive FTE numbers from a sample survey (the HLFS), they are subject to both sampling and non-sampling error, and should therefore be seen as indicative rather than definitive. HLFS population rebase and incidence rates On 31 March 2015, the HLFS underwent a population rebase that revised the statistical series back to the beginning of the series. A population rebase is done to update the weights used in the survey, based on the population counts from the most-recent census. In this rebase we also introduced regional benchmarks, to improve the quality of regional estimates used in the HLFS. Incidence rates in this release are calculated using FTE estimates from the HLFS as the denominator. The new FTE estimates from the HLFS resulted in revisions to incidence rates 30