General News
14 March, 2025
Agriculture leads cause-of-death toll
There were six fatalities in places of work in the Grampians region in 2024, up from five the previous year.
Nearly 1200 claims of injury were also made during that period across the region.
Ballarat had two deaths at a place of work, while Golden Plains, Horsham, Northern Grampians and Yarriambiack all had one each.
Broken down by industry, agriculture, fishing and forestry had two deaths, while accommodation and food services, construction, electricity, gas, waste services and water, and mining all had one.
Two of these deaths involved an accident with a vehicle, one was due to being hit by a moving object, and others were attributed to cave-in or slide (one), long-term contact with chemicals or substances (one) and being trapped by moving equipment or machinery (one).
With agriculture being the industry linked to two of the deaths in the region, Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) president Brett Hosking said it was a reminder that any death was one too many.
"It tragically represents someone’s dad, mother, family friend or loved one," Mr Hosking said.
"Farm safety is a shared responsibility and I urge all farmers to use the resources on offer, including our VFF Making Our Farm Safer project, to help ensure we return home safe at the end of the day.”
Among other workers killed across Victoria were carpenters, delivery drivers, farmhands and teachers.
WorkSafe executive director of health and safety Sam Jenkin said the toll highlighted the fact any workplace was susceptible to a tragedy, so it was essential for employers and workers to stay vigilant.
“Victoria is among the safest places to work in the world but it is simply unacceptable that lives are still being lost in what are entirely preventable workplace incidents,” Mr Jenkin said.
“No family should suffer the devastation of losing a loved one at work and we remain unyielding in our commitment to working towards a future of zero workplace deaths.”
In 2024 WorkSafe accepted 1117 claims of injury in the Grampians region, including Ballarat (624), Horsham (95) and Northern Grampians (83).
Health care and social assistance had the most claims, with 307, while construction had 103, manufacturing 123 and administration and safety 107.
The most common claim cause was body stressing with 401 instances, while the most common claim type was for the musculoskeletal system with 348 incidences reported.
For more information on the VFF's Making Our Farm Safer project visit https://www.makingourfarmssafer.org.au/