Covid: Statistics reveal twice as many working age men died compared to women
Twice as many men of working age died from Covid compared to women in the nine months from March to December 2020, according to the Office for National Statistics.
The figures also showed people working in the care sector were three times more likely to die from Covid in the period.
Overall, there were 7,961 deaths within the 20 to 64 age bracket over the nine months.
Men working in process plants, as security guards or as chefs had some of the highest Covid-19 death rates in 2020, the figures show.
Some of the highest Covid-19 deaths for women included jobs involving assembly lines and routine machine operations, such as sewing machinists, as well as care workers and home carers.
The highest number of deaths per occupation in men (death rate per 100,000)
Plant workers - 143.2
Restaurant and catering establishment managers and proprietors - 119.3
Care workers and home carers - 109.9
Chefs - 103.1
Taxi and cab drivers, chauffeurs - 101.4
Security guards and related occupations - 100.7
The highest number of deaths per occupation in women (death rate per 100,000)
Care workers and home carers - 47.1
Plant and machine assemblers and operatives - 39.2
Social workers - 32.4
Sales and retail assistants - 26.9
Managers and directors in retail and wholesale - 26.7
Ben Humberstone, Head of Health Analysis and Life Event at ONS said: “Today’s analysis shows that jobs with regular exposure to Covid-19 and those working in close proximity to others continue to have higher Covid-19 death rates when compared with the rest of the working age population.
"Men continue to have higher rates of death than women, making up nearly two thirds of these deaths."
Males accounted for 5,128 deaths, which works out at 31.4 deaths per 100,000 men aged 20 to 64 years compared with 16.8 deaths per 100,000 women (2,833 deaths).
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There were 469 deaths from those in the care sector, with three quarters of those being care workers or home carers.
“As the pandemic has progressed, we have learnt more about the disease and the communities it impacts most," Mr Humberstone said.
"There are a complex combination of factors that influence the risk of death; from your age and your ethnicity, where you live and who you live with, to pre-existing health conditions.
"Our findings do not prove that the rates of death involving Covid-19 are caused by differences in occupational exposure.”
The TUC claimed workplace Covid-19 deaths have been “vastly under-reported”.
General secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Everyone should be safe at work. But this pandemic has exposed huge inequalities in our labour market.
“People working in low-paid and insecure jobs have been forced to shoulder much higher risk, with too many losing their lives.
“The Government urgently needs to beef up its workplace safety guidance and get tough on employers who put their workers in harm’s way.”
The largest number of deaths came from those in elementary jobs, which are generally the lowest paid occupations.
Out of the 5,128 male deaths, 699 deaths were had elementary jobs.
Furthermore, nurses had statistically significantly higher rates of death, with 79.1 deaths per 100,000 males, equating to 47 deaths and 24.5 deaths per 100,000 females (110 deaths).