The number of assaults at work rose by 43 per cent last year, from 178 to 255. Nurses and people dealing with the public generally were among those most at risk, the HSA report found.
The deputy general secretary of the Irish Nurses' Organisation, Ms Leonore Mrkwicka, said the situation caused by stress and increasing levels of violence was becoming "very, very serious. There has always been a perception out there that hospitals are safe places, but that is no longer the case."
Staff working in exposed areas such as accident and emergency departments were most at risk, she said. There was also evidence of widespread bullying of nurses, with 46 per cent of those surveyed reporting experience of being bullied.
A breakdown of incidents involving malicious injuries caused to people in the workplace during 1997 showed that 52 involved nurses and social workers and another 149 involved people in the wider public service and defence, including people staffing "compulsory social service" offices. Other high-risk areas were the transport, storage and communication sectors, which reported 34 incidents and the retail/wholesale sector, which reported seven incidents.
The Minister of State for Labour Affairs, Mr Tom Kitt, said that "psycho-social hazards" such as stress, assaults and bullying were of concern to him, as well as to the HSA. He looked forward to initiatives in this area shortly.