A work accident, workplace accident, occupational accident, or accident at work is a "discrete occurrence in the course of

work Work may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community ** Manual labour, physical work done by humans ** House work, housework, or homemaking ** Working animal, an ani ...

" leading to physical or mental occupational injury. According to the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is one of the firs ...

(ILO), more than 337 million accidents happen on the job each year, resulting, together with

occupational disease An occupational disease or industrial disease is any chronic ailment that occurs as a result of work or occupational activity. It is an aspect of occupational safety and health. An occupational disease is typically identified when it is shown th ...

s, in more than 2.3 million deaths annually. The phrase "in the course of work" can include work-related accidents happening off the company's premises, and can include accidents caused by third parties, according to

Eurostat Eurostat ("European Statistical Office"; also DG ESTAT) is a department of the European Commission ( Directorate-General), located in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Eurostat's main responsibilities are to provide statist ...

. The definition of work accident includes accidents occurring "while engaged in an economic activity, or at work, or carrying on the business of the employer" according to the ILO. The phrase "physical or mental harm" means any

injury Injury is physiological damage to the living tissue of any organism, whether in humans, in other animals, or in plants. Injuries can be caused in many ways, including mechanically with penetration by sharp objects such as teeth or with ...

disease A disease is a particular abnormal condition that adversely affects the structure or function (biology), function of all or part of an organism and is not immediately due to any external injury. Diseases are often known to be medical condi ...

, or death. Occupational accidents differ from occupational diseases as accidents are unexpected and unplanned occurrences (e.g.,

mine collapse A mining accident is an accident that occurs during the process of mining minerals or metals. Thousands of miners die from mining accidents each year, especially from underground coal mining, although accidents also occur in hard rock mining. ...

), while occupational diseases are "contracted as a result of an exposure over a period of time to risk factors arising from work activity" (e.g., miner's lung). Incidents that fall within the definition of occupational accidents include cases of acute poisoning, attacks by humans and animals, insects etc., slips and falls on pavements or staircases,

traffic collision A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. Tr ...

s, and accidents on board means of transportation in the course of work, accidents in airports, stations and so on. There is no consensus as to whether

commuting Commuting is periodically recurring travel between a place of residence and place of work or study, where the traveler, referred to as a commuter, leaves the boundary of their home community. By extension, it can sometimes be any regular o ...

accidents (i.e. accidents on the way to work and while returning home after work) should be considered to be work accidents. The ESAW methodology excludes them; the ILO includes them in its conventions concerning health & safety at work, although it lists them as a separate category of accidents; and some countries (e.g.,

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

) do not distinguish them from other work accidents. A fatal accident at work is defined as an accident which leads to the death of a victim. The time within which the death may occur varies among countries: in

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

an accident is registered as fatal if the victim dies during the same day that the accident happened, in Germany if death came within 30 days, while

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and Greece set no time limit. Where the accidents involve multiple fatalities, they are often referred to as

industrial disasters This article lists notable industrial disasters, which are disasters caused by industrial companies, either by accident, negligence or incompetence. They are a form of industrial accident where great damage, injury or loss of life are caused. ...

Types

Although many workplace accidents have relatively minor repercussions, which could result in just a paper cut or scratch, others can have more serious – and potentially fatal – consequences. For instance, there are some industries in which individuals are more exposed to occupational hazards than others, such as the

construction Construction are processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the a ...

trade. This had the highest rate of fatal injuries out of all other industry sections in 2011/12. During this period, falls accounted for 51% of construction injuries resulting in death, demonstrating that builders are more likely to fall from height than those who work in less dangerous locations, such as an office. An independent watchdog – the

Health and Safety Executive The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a British public body responsible for the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare. It has additionally adopted a research role into occupational risks in Great B ...

(HSE) – aims to reduce the number of work-related fatalities and injuries within Great Britain, publishing statistics that show the different – and most common – types of reported workplace injuries across a range of sectors. For example, the HSE reported that, between 2011 and 2012, incidents such as falls from height, becoming trapped by a falling structure, and being struck by a vehicle or moving object, were the reasons for the majority of fatalities to British workers. It was also revealed that slips, trips or falls were responsible for more than 50% of serious injuries to employees. Furthermore, the majority of incidents that resulted in employees taking more than three days off work – or affected their ability to perform their usual duties over this period – were caused by handling accidents. Although some accidents at work can have minor effects, the cumulative impact of workplace injuries is significant, translating into an estimated loss of 70 million lost days of work and approximately 540 million days of lost production time in the U.S., in 2023.

Causal factors

Accidents arise from unsafe behavior and/or unsafe conditions. An important factor is the safety climate or

safety culture Safety culture is the element of organizational culture which is concerned with the maintenance of safety and compliance with safety standards. It is informed by the organization's leadership and the beliefs, perceptions and values that employ ...

of an organization. Safety culture concerns how workplace safety is managed, consisting of the shared attitudes, beliefs, perceptions, and values among employees. Faulty equipment can also cause serious personal injuries, a common example being accidents from faulty ladders. If the rubber feet are absent, the base of the

aluminium Aluminium (or aluminum in North American English) is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol Al and atomic number 13. It has a density lower than that of other common metals, about one-third that of steel. Aluminium has ...

stile can slip suddenly on a hard floor and the user can fall.

Benefits of prevention

According to the Health and Safety Executive, employers who implement suitable measures to prevent accidents in the workplace could reap a number of benefits. As well as reducing the number of injuries at work, managers could also: * Be less likely to suffer legal action * Acquire a better reputation amongst partners, investors, customers and suppliers * Have employees who feel more motivated, demonstrating greater productivity * Reduce costs * Have reduced employee turnover and absence rates. It has been reported that over 2,000,000 working days each year are lost due to handling accidents and slips and trips alone. In Argentina, the work accident rate in the year 2018 decreased 10% from the previous year.

Determining liability

Depending on the circumstances of a workplace accident, several different parties may be held

liable In law, liable means "responsible or answerable in law; legally obligated". Legal liability concerns both civil law and criminal law and can arise from various areas of law, such as contracts, torts, taxes, or fines given by government agencie ...

. These may include the employer, employees, property owner, manufacturer, or other third parties. For example, if it can be proven that an employer was negligent by allowing unsafe working conditions to persist, they may be held responsible for any resulting accidents or injuries.

Examples

During the 2015 shooting of the movie '' Resident Evil: The Final Chapter'', stuntwoman Olivia Jackson had her arm amputated after her motorbike crashed to a metal camera arm during a high-speed chase.

Matilda Rapaport Matilda Rapaport (29 January 1986 – 18 July 2016) was a Swedish alpine free-skier. She was married to Swedish alpine skier Mattias Hargin, and was the niece of Swedish actress Alexandra Rapaport. Early life Career Rapaport was the winner o ...

died from an avalanche while filming an advertisement for the 2016 video game '' Steep''.

References