Safe Work Australia have released the third annual national statement to identify emerging trends in psychosocial health and safety and bullying in Australian workplaces.

A typical mental stress or harassment / bullying claim shows that a person will typically take 9.4 weeks off work costing around $18-22k. 30% of mental stress claims are caused by work pressure and the public order and safety services industries have the highest rates of harassment/bullying claims lodged. 

The data presented in this statement are accepted workers’ compensation claims caused by mental stress. This mechanism of injury or disease is assigned to claims when an employee has been exposed to one of a range of stressors e.g. harassment or bullying, traumatic events or unreasonable work pressure, that has caused an injury or disease. Mental stress claims provide a source of information on the psychosocial health and safety status of Australian workplaces.

The statement found the following summary of the findings:

For more information please visit the Safe Work Australia website. 

Source: Safe Work Australia, 22 December 2016