There were nearly 2.97 million non-fatal accidents at work in the EU in 2022, a 3% increase from 2.88 million in 2021 (+ 87 139 more non-fatal accidents). This increase is probably due to the economic restart in 2022 that followed the general slowdown related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2022, 3 286 work-related accidents were fatal, accounting for 0.1% of all accidents. This was 61 fatalities less than in 2021 and 122 less than in 2013.
This information comes from the European statistics on accidents at work (ESAW) data collection that was released by Eurostat today. This article presents a handful of findings from a more detailed Statistics Explained article on accidents at work.
Across the EU, there were on average 1.66 fatalities per 100 000 employed people in 2022, down from 1.76 fatalities in 2021. The incidence rate has remained below 2.0 fatalities per 100 000 workers since 2016.
Methodological note
An accident at work is defined as an occurrence during the course of work, which leads to physical or mental harm. Fatal accidents at work are those that lead to the death of the victim within one year of the accident taking place. Non-fatal accidents at work are defined as those that imply at least four full calendar days of absence from work (they are sometimes also called ‘serious accidents at work’). The number of accidents in a particular year is likely to be related to some extent to the overall level of economic activity of a country and the total number of people employed in its economy.
More information: Eurostat.
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