Accidents at work: what to do?

Annually, one in 800 Industrial Union members suffers an accident while working. Death at work luckily enough, is fairly uncommon in Finland, but these sad events do happen on occasion. Accor­ding to the Finnish Workers’ Compen­sa­tion Center TVK, up until the middle of August this year six people had died at work.

15.9.2021

Three of these happened on construc­tion sites, one at an assembly plant, one elect­rician death and one at a sawmill. In 2020, a total of 10 people died at work and seven while commu­ting between the home and workplace.

What should you do when faced with a serious occupa­tional accident? First, administer first-aid. Second, call the emergency centre at the number 112. Third, report to the employer.

If the accident is not serious, stop working and go to the doctor. The insurance covers the expenses of the first visit regard­less of where you go. Inform the employer or collea­gues about the accident in order to report it.

Repor­ting accidents is extre­mely impor­tant. It is the basis for possible compen­sa­tion, re-habili­ta­tion, invali­dity pension, official inves­ti­ga­tions and not least to get rid of the existing dangers.

Though occupa­tional safety is the respon­si­bi­lity of the employer, an employee must follow instruc­tions and use protec­tive equip­ment. If you see some deficiency, report it to the occupa­tional safety repre­sen­ta­tive or super­visor. Those who do the work are often best placed to notice problems in safety.

Though occupa­tional safety is the respon­si­bi­lity of the employer, an employee must follow instruc­tions and use protec­tive equipment.

The number of occupa­tional accidents in industry is going down. Last year, 13,823 occupa­tional accidents happened to industrial wage and salary earners. This is 11.5 per cent less than the year before – obviously partly due to the pandemic.

In compa­rison with the year 2005, the number of industrial occupa­tional accidents has dropped 53.1 per cent. The total number of occupa­tional accidents reported in 2020 was the lowest ever in the history of compi­ling these statistics.

Industry has a reputa­tion for being a dange­rous place to work in, but accor­ding to the latest statisticsthat´s not actually the case. This is calcu­lated by the accident frequency rate.

In 2020, this rate in industry was 27,5 occupa­tional accidents per one million hours worked. The general rate in all profes­sions was 25. This diffe­rence is not so great. In the begin­ning of the millen­nium, the rate for industry was as high as 40–45.

The most dange­rous profes­sions are newspaper delivery people and couriers, followed by construc­tion workers.

As always, the Union strives to help and answers any of your questions. Please contact them whenever needed: +358 20 690 449 (Working Environ­ment and Social Security Advice phone service)

TEXT HEIKKI JOKINEN
ILLUSTRATION EMILIE UGGLA