Research: New study on injury under-reporting

The American journal of industrial medicine has recently published an article entitled “Examining the impact of occupational health and safety vulnerability on injury clam reporting in three Canadian provinces.” The survey found that 63.5% of the 326 respondents with physical workplace injuries that required time off or professional medical aid did not report them to the WCB. This finding is broadly consistent with other Canadian studies.

Reporting was higher among non-vulnerable workers who were exposed to hazards. Women, part-timers, those with postgraduate educations, and those working in education, health care and public administration as well as non-unionized workers were less likely to report injuries (although the difference was not statistically significant).

This study adds to the growing literature that suggests WCB claims data is a poor proxy for the true level of occupational injury, even when the injury is serious. Put differently, WCB claims data can provide a misleading picture of the extent of serious injury in the workplace. This has implications for public policy, which is often developed and evaluated based upon claims data.

-- Bob Barnetson