The number of claims in respect of non-fatal accidents at work in the second half of 2021 decreased by 26, or 2.1 per cent, compared to the corresponding period in 2020, the NSO said today.

Three fatal accidents at work were reported in the second half of 2021.

Administrative records show that 1,194 persons were involved in a non-fatal accident at work in the second half of 2021. The majority of these non-fatal accidents occurred in the manufacturing sector (16.9 per cent). Another 175 or 14.7 per cent of the accidents occurred in the construction sector followed by the transportation and storage sector (146 or 12.2 per cent).

When compared to the same period in 2020, the number of accidents increased by 35 in the accommodation and food service activities (Table 1). The largest share of accidents at work during the reference period involved persons working in elementary occupations followed by craft and related trades workers (Table 2). Almost half (45.8 per cent) of the injuries at work affected the upper extremities of the body, such as the fingers and hands.

Wounds and superficial injuries, and dislocations, sprains and strains were the most common types of injuries, amounting to 691 and 283 cases respectively (Table 5). In the second half of 2021, 30.3 per cent of the accidents at work took place in enterprises with 500 employees or more.

In 2021, 873 non-fatal accidents per 100,000 employed persons were reported. The highest standardised incidence rate of non-fatal accidents at work was recorded in manufacturing followed by construction and transportation and storage.

Between July and December 2021, the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) reported three fatal accidents at work. There were four fatal accidents at work in the corresponding period of 2020.