Management Information: Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease reports made by employers to HSE and Local Authorities
This page is no longer being updated. The final update, covering reports made between April 2020 and March 2023 was published on 17 April 2023.
Under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), certain cases of COVID-19 in workers where there is reasonable evidence to suggest that it was caused by occupational exposure are reportable to the relevant enforcing authority.
Up until 31 March 2022, RIDDOR reporting guidance required all confirmed cases of COVID-19 where there was reasonable evidence to suggest that it was caused by occupational exposure to be reported. On 1 April 2022, revised guidance on RIDDOR reporting requirements for COVID-19 was issued. Since 1 April 2022 only cases of COVID-19 due to either deliberately working with the virus (such as in a laboratory) or being incidentally exposed to the virus from working in environments where people are known to have COVID-19 (for example in health and social care) are reportable. Cases due to general transmission (either worker-to-worker, or from contact with members of the public) are no longer reportable. [See note 2 below].
Given this change in reporting requirements, the number of reports made from April 2022 onwards is not directly comparable with earlier time periods.
Over the two-year period 10 April 2020 – 31 March 2022, there were 44,458 notifications of COVID-19 in workers where occupational exposure was suspected, of which 32,110 were made in the 2020/21 year and the remaining 12,348 reported in the 2021/22 year.
Throughout 2022/23, the monthly numbers of reports remained considerably lower than in the earlier two-year period, with a total of 3,142 notifications made. This reduction at least in part reflects the change in reporting requirements made at the start of this year [see note 2 below].
Total suspected occupational COVID-19 reports made by employers to the Enforcing Authorities, 10 April 2020 to 31 March 2023
| Month | Monthly number of reports submitted | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-April 2022 reporting requirements | -1 | 23.5 | |
| Apr 20 (part) | 2053 | ||
| May 20 | 3793 | ||
| Jun 20 | 1856 | ||
| Jul 20 | 809 | ||
| Aug 20 | 534 | ||
| Sep 20 | 1105 | ||
| Oct 20 | 2612 | ||
| Nov 20 | 3704 | ||
| Dec 20 | 4040 | ||
| Jan 21 | 5710 | ||
| Feb 21 | 4183 | ||
| Mar 21 | 1711 | ||
| Apr 21 | 690 | ||
| May 21 | 344 | ||
| Jun 21 | 590 | ||
| Jul 21 | 741 | ||
| Aug 21 | 703 | ||
| Sep 21 | 796 | ||
| Oct 21 | 892 | ||
| Nov 21 | 925 | ||
| Dec 21 | 1269 | ||
| Jan 22 | 2624 | ||
| Feb 22 | 1220 | ||
| Mar 22 | 1554 | ||
| Apr 22 | 738 | ||
| May 22 | 294 | ||
| Jun 22 | 382 | ||
| Jul 22 | 478 | ||
| Aug 22 | 237 | ||
| Sep 22 | 113 | ||
| Oct 22 | 197 | ||
| Nov 22 | 103 | ||
| Dec 22 | 120 | ||
| Jan 23 | 135 | ||
| Feb 23 | 117 | ||
| Mar 23 | 228 | ||
Of the 3,142 notifications of COVID-19 in workers reported under RIDDOR in 2022/23:
- Seventy-three per cent of all reports were recorded by employers as being for workers in the health and social work sector (including for example, hospitals, residential homes and day care). However, the true percentage of reports in this sector will be higher as many reports are mis-classified by employers, particularly to the accommodation sector and to other personal services. These two sectors accounted for 6% and 16% of reports in 2022/23.
- This compares to 56% of reports allocated against the health and social work sector in the first two years of reporting (April 2020 to March 2022), with 4% and 10% to the accommodation and other personal services sectors respectively. The shift in industry reporting towards the health and social work sector in 2022/23 reflects the changed reporting requirements.
- Eighty-one per cent of worker COVID-19 reports received over 2022/23 were from workplaces in England, 13% in Scotland and 7% in Wales. The number of reports by country can be affected by reporting of multiple cases by individual employers. The breakdown by country is relatively consistent over the full three-year period.
For more details, see the table in the link below.
Notes
- Data on number of COVID-19 RIDDOR reports made by duty holders is available from 10 April 2020. This is the date the statutory disease reporting form was changed to enable systematic identification of COVID-19 reports. (Guidance was also issued on this date around reporting requirements for COVID-19 deaths under RIDDOR).
- On 1 April 2022, further guidance was issued on reporting requirements for COVID-19 to bring such reporting back in line with HSE’s core role of regulating businesses to ensure workers and members of the public are protected from the harm created by work activities. From 1 April 2022, cases of COVID-19 due to general transmission in the workplace (either worker-to-worker or from contact with members of the public) are no longer reportable. Full details on reporting requirements post April 2022 can be found on our guide RIDDOR reporting of COVID-19.
- Data is as reported by employers. While individual cases are reviewed by the relevant enforcing authority, these counts do not reflect the outcome of these reviews. It should also be noted that as the data is ‘as-reported’ by employers there is potential for some error in some of the reported data items.
- This data is intended to provide an indicator of the numbers being reported to the enforcing authorities and how this changes over time rather than an accurate count of the absolute number of occupational COVID-19 cases. It should be noted that many of the reports made reflect historic cases, sometimes from up to several months ago.