3.8% increase in non-fatal accidents at work in 2018
There has been a 3.8 per cent increase in non-fatal accidents at work during the first half of 2018, a report published by the National Statistics Office (NSO) states. Records show that 1,653 persons were involved in these non-fatal accidents, an increase of 60 people over the corresponding period in 2017.
The manufacturing industry had the highest share of these non-fatal accidents (15.4%), closely followed by the construction industry (15.1%) and the transportation and storage industry (13.7%).
Notable changes when compared to the same period in 2017 was a decrease of 22 such accidents in human health and social work activities and an increase of 34 such accidents in administrative and support service activities.
Of those involved in these accidents 89.5 per cent were employed on a full-time basis, and almost a third of the accidents took place in enterprises with more than 500 employees, while another quarter took place in enterprises with 50 to 249 employees.
Slightly more than half of the persons injured in non-fatal accidents were aged between 25 and 44, while 80.1 per cent of those injured were male. Injuries to the upper extremities, such as the fingers and hands, accounted for 45.8 per cent, while wounds and superficial injuries along with dislocations, sprains and strains were the most common types of injuries, amounting to 980 and 374 cases respectively. There were other more severe injuries, with 190 bone fractures, a case of traumatic amputation and a case of drowning and asphyxiations recorded as well.
The overwhelming majority of these accidents occurred in the harbour areas, with the northern harbour area accounting for 40.1 per cent and the souther harbour areas accounting for 33.4 per cent of all injuries respectively. Gozo and Comino, meanwhile, registered by far the least non-fatal accidents, with just 1.5 per cent occurring on the sister islands.
Meanwhile, between January and June 2018 the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) reported one fatal accident at work. There was also one fatality at work in the corresponding period of 2017.