More teachers injured at work

The number of Wairarapa teachers hurting themselves at school is on the rise - but the cost to ACC is dropping.

ACC figures show local teachers have made 72 claims for injuries received while at school so far this year - up from 56 in 2011 and 2012.

The total cost of the claims averaged about $38,000 for 2011 and 2012, and is close to $14,300 this year to date.

Wellington Regional Primary Principals' Association president and principal of Masterton's Lakeview School, Ed Hodgkinson, cited a possible correlation between accidents and a "steadily ageing" workforce as older teachers became more vulnerable.

"The workforce is steadily growing older. Being a teacher is a fairly stable position ... so people stick with education on the whole."

Teaching involved a number of risky activities. Climbing ladders, slipping over outside and tripping over errant school bags were the biggest offenders.

National ACC figures show the number of teacher workplace injuries has increased over the past three years, while the cost to taxpayers dropped from almost $5.9 million in 2011 to $3.9 million last year, and $2.65 million this year to date.

Teachers have reported more than 5918 injuries already this year - considerably more than 5457 for the whole of 2011 and 5669 for for 2012.

Teachers aged between 50 and 54 suffered the most injuries and women were more injury-prone than men.

Soft tissue injuries were the most common, with more than 4000 reported each year.

Punctures, stings and lacerations were second, averaging about 650 annual claims.

Fracture and dislocation injuries rose slightly, while the number of burns fell in the past two years.

The number of dental injuries, concussions and "foreign bodies in orifices" was stable.

Nearly 4100 claims have already been made by female teachers this year, costing almost $1.7 million - compared with 1810 male teacher claims, costing $886,000.

Post Primary Teachers Association president Angela Roberts said the national rise in injuries could be attributed to the deteriorating standards of school buildings and equipment.

"A lot of school buildings around the country are coming to the end of being fit for purpose and there is a massive issue around that."

Funds for general maintenance had also been diverted for earthquake damage and leaky buildings, she said.

"You have holes in lino that people trip over, and you do have leaky roofs that make puddles that people slip in."

The rise of injuries could also reflect worsening student behaviour, and assaults on school staff, she said.

Increasing demands on teachers, including class sizes and workload also boosted stress levels.

"Being in a classroom is different from what it was 10 years ago."APNZ