There were 48 workplace deaths in Saskatchewan in 2018, a 78 per cent increase from 2017, according to a release issued by Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board on Thursday.

“This is devastating for our province. Behind every statistic is a loved one who will never come home to their family,” WCB CEO Peter Federko said. “The impact of losing someone dear to us is devastating.

“We’ve embarked on several research projects with the University of Regina and the University of Saskatchewan to understand more about our workplace fatalities.”

Saskatchewan WCB said the 15-year average for workplace deaths is 37. The lowest number of deaths in the workplace in the past 15 years was 27 in 2017.

Motor vehicle collisions represented the top cause for deaths in the workplace.

The workplace injury rate in Saskatchewan in 2018 was 5.44 per 100 workers, a 3.6 per cent increase compared to 2017.

Despite the increase, time lost due to injury remained similar. The time loss injury rate was 1.99 per 100 workers in 2018 compared to 1.86 in 2017.

“While we are seeing a slight increase in 2018 injury rates, thanks to the health, safety and prevention efforts of people around the province, many employers achieved zero injuries” said Phil Germain, vice-president of Prevention and Employer Services at the WCB.

Eighty-eight per cent of Saskatchewan employers achieved Mission: Zero, which means zero injuries, zero fatalities and zero suffering.

The full release can be found on their website.

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