842 non-fatal workplace accidents recorded in third quarter

Claims in respect of non-fatal accidents at work in the third quarter of 2015 remained almost at par with the corresponding quarter in 2014 increasing by just one case. One fatal accident at work was reported.

Administrative records show that 842 persons were involved in a non-fatal accident during their work in the third quarter this year.

The majority of non-fatal accidents at work occurred in the manufacturing sector (21.4 per cent). Another 132 or 15.7 per cent of these accidents occurred in construction followed by transport and storage (14.6 per cent). When compared to the same quarter last year, the number of accidents in accomodation and food services activities decreased by nine cases.

The largest share of accidents at work during the reference quarter involved persons working in elementary occupations, (31.8 per cent) followed by those in crafts and related trades (21.4 per cent).

Out of all injuries, 366 affected the upper extremities of the body, such as the fingers and hands. ‘Wounds and superficial injuries’, and ‘dislocations, strains and sprains’ were the most common types of injuries, amounting to 546 and 177 cases respectively.

In the quarter under review, 28.3 per cent of the accidents at work took place in enterprises which employed 500 workers or more.

The majority of incidents happened in industrial sites with 1,154 (36.3 per cent) and 1,082 (33.9 per cent) accidents for 2013 and 2014 respectively.

Between July and September 2015, the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) reported one fatal accident at work. There were no fatalities at work in the corresponding period of 2014.