While Saskatchewan’s 2025 total injury rate reached a provincial low for the fourth consecutive year, serious workplace injuries still affect approximately 2,500 workers in the province each year.
To reflect the evolving nature of workplace safety and prevention across Saskatchewan, WorkSafe Saskatchewan announced a refreshed, holistic strategic framework to promote the next generation of prevention and total worker health, safety and well-being. WorkSafe Saskatchewan is a partnership between the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety and the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB).
“Saskatchewan is strong and growing, and we must protect what matters most: our families, friends and communities,” said Minister Ken Cheveldayoff. “By actively involving workers and building on our strong legacy and culture of safety, together we’re helping create safer workplaces. A strong Saskatchewan is a safe Saskatchewan.”
For over 20 years, WorkSafe Saskatchewan has partnered with workers, employers, labour, safety associations and government to improve workplace safety. When WorkSafe Saskatchewan launched in 2002, Saskatchewan’s time-loss injury rate was the second highest in Canada at 4.95 per 100 workers. As of 2024, Saskatchewan’s time-loss injury rate has improved, dropping to the fourth highest in the country. Since 2002, time loss injuries have decreased by 67 per cent, and the total injury rate has decreased by 67 per cent. In 2025, 89 per cent of Saskatchewan workplaces reported zero injuries or fatalities.
“Through the partnership between the Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety and [WCB], WorkSafe Saskatchewan is leading the next generation of prevention,” said Cheveldayoff. “By engaging workers and employers as partners in health, safety and well-being, we are continuing to reduce injuries and strengthen workplaces across the province.”
The refreshed WorkSafe strategic framework focuses on a broader, human-centred approach to prevention
“This progress reflects the shared commitment of employers, workers, safety associations and labour across Saskatchewan and forms the foundation for our focus on safety, health and well-being,” said Gord Dobrowolsky, WCB chair. “Workplace safety and prevention [are] changing, and our approach must change with it. This approach recognizes that safety, health and wellbeing connect deeply. When workers are safe and supported, our province is stronger.”
While workplace injury trends are moving in a positive direction overall, the number of serious injuries and fatalities in the province remains steady. There were 27 workplace fatalities in 2024 and 2025. As of Dec. 31, 2025, the total number of claims that reached serious injury status in 2024 was 2,599, a 6.91 per cent increase over 2,431 serious injuries in 2023. Between 11 and 15 per cent of all claims in the province are serious injury claims, which make up approximately 80 per cent of the costs to the Saskatchewan compensation system.
To address these challenges, WorkSafe Saskatchewan’s 2023-2028 Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy focuses on the primary drivers of work-related fatalities and serious injuries. The three main workplace sectors of focus are health care, transportation and construction. In 2025, two of the three main workplace sectors showed improvement in their injury rates. Health care’s total injury rate declined 12.6 per cent, construction declined three per cent and transportation remained at 5.5 per cent.
“Since focusing on serious injuries and fatality prevention, we have made modest progress, but we have also learned more about what’s needed to move forward,” said WCB CEO Phillip Germain. “Our renewed strategic framework will focus investments to turn the curve on serious injury prevention and further support the 2023-2028 Fatalities and Serious Injuries Strategy.”
The refreshed WorkSafe strategic framework focuses on a broader, human-centred approach to prevention. In addition to physical safety, it recognizes the role of psychological health, resilience and belonging.
Key actions include:
- Strengthening returntowork programs that support recovery and longterm outcomes.
- Promoting psychological health and safety alongside physical safety.
- Leveraging technology to help prevent occupational disease exposure and musculoskeletal injuries in health care.
- Using industryspecific data and insights to inform prevention efforts.
- Encouraging strong safety leadership and shared accountability at every level.
- Actively engaging workers and employers as partners in prevention.
“The future of WorkSafe Saskatchewan integrates safety, health and well-being. Our focus goes beyond only preventing injuries … supporting workers to thrive, both on and off the job,” said Germain. “Safety in our province means uniting physical protection, psychological health and overall wellness under one shared focus of safer workplaces and stronger communities. By working together, we can achieve better outcomes to support workers, employers, the economy and the health-care system across Saskatchewan.”
For more information about WorkSafe’s holistic strategic framework, visit worksafesask.ca. For more information about the fatalities and serious injuries strategy, view the reports at worksafesask.ca/fatalities-and-serious-injuries.
