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The Glossary defines terms used across the website. For dataset-specific terms not listed in the Glossary, refer to the relevant data dictionary or data specification file (under ‘Technical information’ on each dataset page).
The object, substance or circumstance directly involved in inflicting the injury or disease.
For further information refer to the coding structure defined by the Type of Occurrence Classification System (TOOCS) 3rd Edition.
This term has been superseded by ‘Total claims’.
The part of the body affected by the most serious injury or disease.
The object, substance or circumstance that was principally involved in, or most closely associated with, the point at which things started to go wrong, and which ultimately led to the most serious injury or disease.
Workers' compensation claims for work-related injuries and illnesses recorded in the National Dataset for Compensation Based Statistics (NDS).
The number of claims per million hours worked. This is based on ABS estimates of the working population covered under workers' compensation schemes.
This measure accounts for differences in hours worked and allows comparisons between worker groups and over time.
The number of claims per thousand jobs. This is based on ABS estimates of the number of jobs filled by workers that are covered under a workers’ compensation scheme.
Workers’ compensation claims data are available for a range of claims types, including:
Refers to Commonwealth regulators:
All workers compensation payments made to the worker or their family for a work-related injury or disease (as at the reporting date).
A document that describes the data, including field names, definitions, and attributes.
Data dictionaries are available under ‘Technical information’ on the dataset pages.
A dispute occurs when someone formally challenges an insurer’s decision about a workers’ compensation claim by asking for a review, mediation, conciliation, or another official assessment process.
Deaths due to fatal workplace injuries.
Work-related fatalities (Fatalities) data are derived from the Work-related Traumatic Injury Fatalities Database (TIF).
The number of work-related fatalities per 100,000 workers (based on estimates of the entire working population including Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel).
Measures whether a scheme has enough assets to meet future claim payments. It is calculated by comparing assets to liabilities at the end of the financial year, assuming all other liabilities are already fully funded.
The range of economic activities undertaken by a business to produce goods and/or services. Recorded using the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSCO).
The Commonwealth, states and territories responsible for implementing and enforcing work health and safety (WHS) and workers' compensation laws.
See a list of regulators for each jurisdiction.
Accepted workers' compensation claims that resulted in one or more days/shifts away from work, permanent impairment, or fatality.
Lost time claims are the default reporting group for Worker Compensation Injury Frequency Rates (WCIFR).
The number of lost time claims per million hours worked.
The data previously published as ‘Lost Time Injury Frequency Rates’ (LTIFR) is now published in the Workers' Compensation Injury Frequency Rates (WCIFR) dashboard. You can find this data using the Claims type ‘Lost time claims’.
The overall action, exposure or event that best describes the circumstances that resulted in the most serious injury or disease.
Compensation paid is all payments made to a worker or worker’s family in association with a workers compensation claim.
The median is used for reporting because a few high-value claims can distort the average compensation paid. Median compensation paid excludes claims where zero compensation was paid.
Median compensation paid is not reported for the preliminary data year, because a high proportion of claims from that year remain open and may affect this calculation.
The median number of working weeks that claimants had off work in association with a workers compensation claim.
Median time lost is not reported for the preliminary data year, because a high proportion of claims from that year remain open and will likely significantly affect this calculation.
The most serious injury or disease sustained or suffered by the worker.
The type of job performed by a worker. Recorded using the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO).
Accepted workers' compensation claims resulting in total or partial permanent incapacity (as defined by jurisdictions) or fatality.
Permanent impairment claims are useful for comparing claims that have a permanent impact on worker health and productivity.
For workers compensation, the latest year of data is considered preliminary because data are likely to change as revisions occur in future years and open compensation claims are resolved.
For work-related fatalities, preliminary data refers to the estimated number of workers killed in Australian workplaces in the current year.
The standardised Australian average premium rate is measured as a percentage of payroll. This measure provides a comparison of the cost of workers' compensation insurance in Australia across all industries.
A quad bike (also called an ATV or four-wheeler) is a motorized off-road vehicle with four wheels, handlebar steering, and a seat that a single rider sits astride.
Regulators are responsible for monitoring and enforcing compliance with WHS laws within their jurisdiction.
The proportion of surveyed injured workers who reported having returned to work at any time since their work-related injury or illness.
Accepted workers' compensation claims that involve one or more weeks away from work, excluding:
‘Serious claims’ are comparable across jurisdictions and is Safe Work Australia's default reporting standard.
Serious claims excluding claims where the Nature of injury/disease was coded as 855 Novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Presumptive rights for COVID-19 claims differ across jurisdictions, affecting comparability between jurisdictions. See table 4.11 of the Comparison of Workers’ Compensation Arrangements in Australia and New Zealand (2021) for more detail.
Accepted workers' compensation claims involving 13 weeks or more away from work.
This claims type is useful for comparing claims that have a relatively high impact on worker health and productivity and often result in poorer return to work outcomes.
All accepted workers' compensation claims across Australian jurisdictions.
Total claims are used to assess trends across all accepted claims regardless of severity or compatibility across jurisdictions.
A suite of four classifications to code the way an injury occurred, comprising:
Fatalities are only coded by Mechanism and Agency.
The number of claims occurring per million hours worked over a given time period.
Use the WCIFR dashboard to filter by different Claims types based on the data used for WHS reporting in your organisation.
More information can be found on the Understanding workers' compensation injury frequency rates page.
Measures how much time a worker has away from work due to a work-related injury or illness.
It is calculated by dividing the total hours lost by the number of hours the employee normally works each week. For example, if an employee usually works 20 hours per week and misses 60 hours due to an injury, they have lost 3 working weeks.
This method allows time lost to be compared fairly across employees who work different hours.
