I am not sure that SWA sees this as part of its role. The best thing is to continue to point out that those with negative “mental health conditions” are not the majority of Australian workers. It is common for mental health advocates to say that one in five Australians have had a mental health condition in their lifetimes. That 20% seems a lot but the statistic also indicates that 80% of Australians don’t have a mental health condition. The statement by HeadsUp that mental health conditions are only diagnosed conditions makes the statistic more significant in one way but also means that those workers who feel anxious or depressed are likely to be experiencing life as 80% of Australians experience it.

SWA knows that only a minority of workers make claims for compensation and that there are many more injured workers than SWA’s claims-based data indicate. It would be good for SWA to regularly make that point but spreading the word is also the role of the OHS professionals.

There is a very telling scene in “A Very British Coup” where the Prime Minister has a defence advisor who knows all of the statistical tricks used by the defence forces to maximise their funding. The OHS profession needs to continue to point out the statistical reality of workplace health and safety in Australia. One of the most useful statistics in this blog (from SWA data) is that the Employers only pay 5% of the total cost of a worker’s injury (https://safetyatworkblog.com/2015/02/24/new-research-on-ohs-business-case/).