The 2025 State of a Thriving Nation report from the Business Leaders Health and Safety Forum makes clear the cost to New Zealand and workers of our comparatively poor health and safety performance, says the New Zealand Institute of Safety Management.

The Business Leaders Health and Safety Forum report released today sets out some stark statistics:

• The cost of harm to New Zealand workers, businesses and Government has risen from $5.2 billion in 2024 to $5.4 billion in 2024
• Our workplace fatality rate is 6.9 x that of the United Kingdom and 1.7 x that of Australia. These trends (and similar ones for injury) remain when correcting for the type of work we do in New Zealand compared to other countries.
• 80% of the 25 OECD countries with higher productivity than New Zealand have lower workplace death rates
• Serious injuries involving more than a week off work have fallen, but the average time to recover is now twice what it was 15 years ago.

"Together, these numbers add up to a huge and tragic cost to New Zealand workers and their families and a massive drag on businesses, and their productivity as well as a burden on ACC, health and social welfare," said Mike Cosman, New Zealand Institute of Safety Management (NZISM) spokesperson. NZISM is calling on the Government to seize the opportunity to invest in the system and lift this burden of harm. "We urge the Government to ensure that their health and safety reforms respond to the call from businesses, workers and experts to ensure:

• Better system leadership and coordination between agencies with clear governance to hold them accountable for delivering results
• Improving and investing in WorkSafe. The need for a well-funded regulator with the right capacity and capability, a clear direction and a collaborative mindset has never been greater
• Clearer and more comprehensive regulations and guidance. In a fast-moving world our standards need to reflect the current context and be kept up to date.

___

ENDS