The chemical industry continues to be one of Australia’s safest industry sectors, despite operating in complex and high-risk environments. New data shows Chemistry Australia members recorded injury rates well below national targets while maintaining a strong focus on continuous improvement.

Released today, the Health and Safety Performance Report 2025 found Chemistry Australia members recorded a total injury rate of 1.67 per cent over the 5-year rolling average, less than half the Australian Work Health and Safety Strategy target of 3.5 per cent. Members also recorded zero fatalities across more than 44 million hours worked and 23,054 employees covered by the survey.

Chemistry Australia CEO Matthew Flügge said the results reflected the industry's longstanding commitment to workplace safety and responsible management of chemicals, plastics and industrial gases.

“Safety is not a compliance exercise for our industry. It is fundamental to how our members operate every day,” said Mr Flügge.

“These results show our members continue to deliver some of the strongest workplace safety outcomes in Australia, despite operating in environments that involve hazardous materials and complex manufacturing processes.”

The Australian chemical industry is one of the country's largest manufacturing sectors and is critical to the operation of 95% of Australia’s industries. It underpins everything from agriculture, food and safe drinking water to mining, advanced manufacturing, packaging and technology to medical devices, pharmaceuticals and healthcare.

The report found the industry's total injury rate continued to trend below the national target, while members recorded improvements in medical treatment injuries and total recordable injuries compared with 2024. The mental health injury frequency rate was also the lowest recorded since Chemistry Australia began including mental health data in 2020.

Mr Flügge said the results demonstrated that strong safety performance and a strong manufacturing sector go hand in hand.

“Publishing these results provides governments, regulators and the broader community with confidence that our industry takes its responsibilities seriously and continues to invest in safe operations, strong systems and safety culture,” he said.

“While we are proud of this performance, we are not complacent. Every workplace injury matters and there is always more work to do.”

The report was launched today at Chemistry Australia’s annual Health and Safety Forum, with presentations from leaders across the sector, including WorkSafe Victoria, WesCEF and FBT Transwest.

“More than 60 industry leaders came together for the launch of the report to discuss emerging safety risks, share lessons and identify opportunities to further strengthen health and safety performance across the sector,” Mr Flügge said.

The report also identified priority areas for industry attention, including the over-representation of workers aged 25 to 34 in injury statistics and continued priority focus on serious injuries. Manual handling falls on the same level and cuts and abrasions remain among the most common causes of injury across participating companies.

“An important strength of this report is that it helps us identify emerging risks early, share lessons across the sector and focus industry attention where it is needed most,” Mr Flügge said.

“Maintaining high standards of safety is critical for our workers, our communities and the customers who rely on our products every day.”

The report found Chemistry Australia members continue to perform better than all major high-risk industries when benchmarked against national workplace injury data, reinforcing the sector's position as one of Australia's safest.