Locality profiles shine a light on regional workers’ compensation claims

Nearly 95 per cent of injured workers in Brisbane return to some form of employment, with injured workers off the job for 42.3 days on average for each workers' compensation claim requiring time off work.

The statistic is highlighted in a new series of locality guides comparing Queensland's workers' compensation figures, population statistics and workplace injury data for each area.

The guides compare local regional figures with the Queensland average, as well as current and predicted statistics, showing for instance that Brisbane's workforce should increase by 70,000 by 2022, compared with an increase of just 3,000 in Townsville.

Other figures in the locality profiles focus on the largest employers and the top five occupation groups, with information on workers' compensation claims for the area. The highest risk industries are listed, and the highest risk occupations, as well as the main age group affected.

The profiles point to several shared statistics across the regions: manufacturing, construction and agriculture having the highest workers' compensation claims rate by industry in many regions. And body stressing, slips trips and falls, as well as being hit by moving objects, were the major mechanisms of injury across the regions.

The profiles cover Brisbane, Ipswich, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Rockhampton, Townsville and Toowoomba. The profiles can be found at www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/statistics/reports/reports-and-statistics