Introduction Novel access to workers’ compensation claims data, in particular disallowed claims and claim eligibility status decisions, was used to inform an evidence need on sex/gender differences in experiences of the workers’ compensation process in British Columbia, Canada.

Objectives To conduct a sex/gender stratified analyses of the risk of work-related acute injuries and cumulative disorders, and of the adjudication of the work-relatedness of these injuries and disorders.

Methods Compensation claims for ASTDs, concussions and noise-induced hearing loss (2003–17) were analysed for differences between women and men by age-adjusted rates of accepted claims within occupations (ASTDs and concussions only), for ratios of disallowed to accepted claims (ASTDS and hearing loss only), and for time to final claim eligibility decision (ASTDs, concussions and hearing loss).

Results We observed higher rates and rates of increase for women compared to men in the same occupations for ASTDs (e.g. 65 versus 43 claims per 1,000 workers for women and men respectively in labourer occupations in processing/manufacturing), and for concussions (e.g. increase from 13 to 25 claims versus from 12 to 16 claims per 1,000 workers for women and men respectively in transportation/equipment operation occupations over the study period). We observed higher ratios of disallowed to accepted claims for women compared to men for ASTDs (1.4 versus 0.5) and hearing loss (4.1 versus 0.4). We observed longer durations to final accepted claim eligibility decisions for women compared to men for ASTDs (e.g. 49 versus 43 days at the 50th percentile) and hearing loss (238 versus 204 days), but not concussions (7 days each).

Conclusion The findings warrant further investigation to understand the increased risks of ASTDs and concussions among women compared to men, especially in occupations that have been traditionally male-dominated; and for potential gender/sex biases in the adjudication and recognition of work-related cumulative injuries and disorders among women.