A ceremony has been held at the Garden of Remembrance in Dublin to mark Workers' Memorial Day, which remembers those who have died, been injured or made seriously ill as a result of work.
In 2025 alone, 63 people died in workplace incidents. That was a 75% increase on the 36 people who lost their lives in 2024.
So far this year there have been seven workplace fatalities, compared to 14 for the same period last year.
Across the ten-year period from 2016 to 2025, 456 people in Ireland died in work-related incidents. Many more suffered life changing injuries or occupational illness.
Today's national commemorative event was attended by family members who have lost loved ones in work-related incidents.
Also in attendance were representatives from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, the Health and Safety Authority, Ibec and the Construction Industry Federation.
Minister of State for Employment, Small Business and Retail Alan Dillon addressed the event.
"Today is a solemn day of remembrance, but it also acts as a call to responsibility," Mr Dillon said.
"It calls on all of us - government, employers, workers, and society as a whole - to reflect on pro-active measures taken and what more we can do to prevent tragedy and protect lives," he added.
Owen Reidy, General Secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, said the most effective tool for ensuring good health and safety at work is properly selected, trained and supported safety representatives.
"Employers who engage in proper consultation with safety reps and safety committees see a lower rate of injury rates than those who operate without consultation," Mr Reidy said.
"We urge employers, the HSA and employer federations to do everything possible to support elected Safety Reps," he added.
Mark Cullen, the chief executive of the Health and Safety Authority, said the same hazards continue to account for the majority of fatal incidents in Irish workplaces.
"Working with machinery and working at height remain the leading causes of death year after year," Mr Cullen said.
"The focus must be on the fundamentals, because it is familiar hazards, not emerging ones, that continue to feature in these avoidable fatal incidents," he added.
In a statement issued to mark Workers' Memorial Day, the Unite trade union called on the Government to introduce new protections for workers during and after extreme weather events.
"Extreme weather poses increasing risk to workers - both while in work or when travelling," Unite Irish Secretary Susan Fitzgerald said.
"We need to see legislation to offer real protections to workers - laws that will allow unions to protect our members in these extreme events," Ms Fitzgerald said.
