Number of accidents at work in construction: increase, decrease or status quo?
According to the annual report by Fedris, the Federal Agency for Occupational Risks, there were again more accidents at work in 2018: some 7.2% more than in 2015. But in the construction sector - where almost a tenth of these incidents occur - a fall of 2.8% can be seen. Marc De Wilde, advisor at the Construction Confederation, explains the figures.
During 2018 147,124 industrial accidents occurred in Belgium. This figure includes both accidents at the place of employment and during commuting. In 2015, the total number of accidents was 137,219, the lowest in 10 years. But since then the number of incidents has risen, in 2018 for the third year in a row.
Occupational accidents in the construction sector broken down by consequence
9.9% of all accidents at work, or 14,600 accidents, occurred in the construction sector. Whereby:
- 50% led to a temporary disability.
- 14% of the victims dropped out permanently. In 0.2% of the cases it was a fatal accident.
- one third of the workers affected could remain at work.
Figures are relative
According to Marc De Wilde, Advisor Safety and Welfare of the Construction Confederation, these figures give a distorted picture. “It's true that there's an increase in absolute figures. However, both in the global Belgian economy and in the construction industry itself, employment has increased significantly over the past 2 years. In terms of percentage, there were fewer accidents in 2018 than in previous years.”
European midsection
Still, there's a long way to go. “The construction sector in our country has traditionally had a high number of industrial accidents”, says Marc De Wilde. "Belgium ranks among the absolute world leaders in terms of competence and innovation, but lags behind in Europe when it comes to safety. In our country, a construction worker is 50% more at risk of an accident at work than in the top countries of the Netherlands, Sweden, Ireland and Great Britain. That's a painful observation.”
Campaign 'Safety, My Priority’
Therefore in early 2019 the Construction Federation launched the 'Safety, My Priority' campaign,which points out the importance of safety on site to building contractors. “We hope that the figures for 2019 will show a first impact of this campaign,” concludes De Wilde.
Visit the campaign website for more information www.safetymypriority.be.