Report based on data from Canadian WCBs finds 1,056 accepted fatalities in 2023
Canada saw over 1,000 accepted workplace fatalities in 2023 — the highest number in recent years — according to a newly released national report that examines injury and fatality trends across provinces and territories. The 2025 Report on Work Fatality and Injury Rates in Canada, co-authored by Sean Tucker, professor of occupational health and safety at the University of Regina, calls attention to systemic data delays, under-reporting, and policy gaps that undermine prevention efforts.
“That’s 1,056 accepted fatalities — and it’s not just a number. It’s lives lost, families grieving, and lessons still unlearned,” says Tucker.
Occupational disease fatalities outnumber traumatic injuries
Using data from the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada (AWCBC), the report differentiates between traumatic injury fatalities and occupational disease deaths, offering a rare jurisdictional comparison.
“Each year we find that approximately there’s 1,000 fatality claims accepted by WCBs across Canada, and a third of those are related to traumatic injury fatality. Two-thirds, roughly, are related to occupational disease,” Tucker explains.
Nine of twelve jurisdictions showed a decrease in occupational disease fatality rates in 2023, but Tucker cautions that variability and under-reporting make trends hard to assess. “We know that not all occupational disease deaths are represented in WCB claims. It depends on the treating physician — are they taking an occupational history for their patient?”
Injury fatality rates remain high in several provinces
Saskatchewan, Alberta, and the Northwest Territories/Nunavut once again report the highest average injury fatality rates. “Year in, year out, Nunavut and NWT stand out,” says Tucker. “Their five-year average injury fatality rate is 7.2. This is a jurisdiction with under 50,000 full-time equivalents.”
Even in larger provinces, concerns are growing. “Ontario… reached 1.7 per 100,000 in 2023,” Tucker says. “The last time it was this high was in 2011 at 1.9. It's been kind of creeping up slowly, and that’s concerning.”
Lost-time injury rates fall — but interpretation is cautious
The report notes that in 2023, all jurisdictions saw a decrease in their lost-time injury rate — a rare national trend. However, Tucker attributes this drop largely to the tapering of COVID-related claims from earlier pandemic years.
“We think that’s due to the pandemic,” he says. “For 2021 and 2022 there were a significant number of work-related COVID claims that were accepted by WCBs.”
Under-reporting and policy gaps remain
The report devotes significant attention to data limitations and under-reporting, including claim suppression by employers and barriers faced by workers. “We’ve got at least two big issues here. One is that workers aren’t aware... and may perceive the WCB process is too cumbersome,” Tucker says. “Then we’ve got claim suppression — employers that are concerned about their premiums or worried about being flagged.”
He references research from Stephanie Premji, an associate professor at McMaster University’s School of Labour Studies, showing just 73 claim suppression penalties across 33 Ontario employers between 2019 and 2023.
Four key recommendations for change
Tucker and co-author Anya Keefe make four recommendations aimed at improving both data quality and prevention:
- Release annual injury and fatality data by March 31 to inform timely analysis and action.
- Harmonize data definitions across jurisdictions, especially for lost-time injuries and fatality classifications.
- Explore solutions to address under-reporting, from better public awareness to tougher enforcement.
- Enhance primary prevention activities, including targeted inspection, education, and outreach.
Tucker suggests provinces could follow the example of jurisdictions that have launched public awareness campaigns or partnered with researchers to examine injury under-reporting. “Ontario, Manitoba, BC have done injury under-reporting studies that I would encourage all provinces to do.”
The dedication page: Data meets humanity
One of the most powerful elements of the report is its opening dedication page, which names workers who died in 2024 due to work-related causes — complete with photos, ages, and brief descriptions.
“It's by and large a statistical report,” Tucker says, “but these are people we're talking about — people who went to work, and there was a traumatic event, and they never came home. They're missed.”
Tucker urges his fellow safety professionals to read the full report on ResearchGate.
“I hope they share the report… It can be difficult in that role to influence. But here, we’ve got an independent report, we’ve got stats, and we’ve got a dedication page that makes it real.”
