Daily Fatalities Reach Two and Over 600,000 Workplace Accidents Recorded in the Previous Year: The Visages of On-the-Job Mishaps
Workplace woes hit hard, and Spain isn't immune. Take Antonio, a rural entrepreneur who once managed several Castilla-La Mancha estates, but now struggles with a disability from a decade-old on-the-job accident. "Fifty meters is a long walk for me now," he laments, his life forever altered due to negligence and a hydraulic arm striking his spine.
Tragic incidents like Antonio's might not be common, but they're regular. Since records began, over 42K people have lost their lives at work across Spain, an average of almost two every day. Can't get any grimmer than that, can it? Well, the grim reality continues into 2024, with 103 fatalities already counted, and the total rising as deaths related to workplace accidents cover a 12-month span.
Playing the unfortunate lottery on the way to work isn't fun either. Sara, a teacher in Zaragoza, suffered an accident 'en route' on her motorcycle. While stopped to chat with a cop, a reckless driver didn't see her, slamming into her from behind. Luckily, a bump and a few strains were all she took away from the ugly encounter, but she still missed the chance to teach for 15 days.
Accidents away from the workplace might not make the news, but they do occur. In 2023, an astounding 600K incidents with sick leave were reported in Spain, a 3.5% drop from the year before, according to the Ministry of Labor. But get this, folks - it's not all sunshine and wireless safety agreements turning this number down. It might just be a change in the counting criteria, with COVID-19 cases no longer classed as workplace accidents.
It's always been the service sector causing the most accidents (over six out of ten), what with 75% of workers and more than 16 million people being a part of it. But; it hasn't always been so. A graph showing the labor market's shift tells us that industry once accounted for nearly half of these accidents, now barely reaching the 20% mark.
But hold onto your hard hats; construction and agriculture have the highest rates of accidents, according to Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration data. Enrique, a construction site foreman, can attest to this. Two years ago, he climbed onto a dodgy, cantilever positioned scaffold and fell from a first-floor landing, his femur shattering in five pieces. After four surgeries and a bone length change, his limp will never disappear.
So, what can we say about the farms and construction sites? You'd think they'd be the safest places to work, right? I mean, it's just plowing fields or building skyscrapers. But no, they've got the highest fatality rates - the combination of lack of preventive culture and speedy schedules come together to create an environment that should give you goosebumps.
Wanna know something really interesting? The construction and agricultural sectors have the least workers - only hundreds of thousands compared to the millions working in the service sector. This raises a bunch of questions. Are there not enough eyes on these sectors, or are the workers just asking for trouble? Or maybe both.
You'd think unions and associations would be up-in-arms after hearing these numbers, huh? Well, they are, and they're demanding stronger resources at various levels to prevent accidents. Mariano Sanz, secretary of Labor Health and Environmental Sustainability from CCOO, wants specialized courts that actually know their stuff, commenting on trials relating to fatal accidents that take years and leave families devastated.
Ana García, from UGT, also points towards an overwhelmed Labor Inspection. "We need stronger resources, not just visits due to complaints, but also scheduled visits, real campaigns, so that companies feel they have to comply," she says. Felipe, a wood industry veteran, echoes this sentiment, stating that inspections were crucial for him to take sick leave when he was injured because his company was having a spate of incidents and didn't want scrutiny.
But why all the accidents, you ask? It's all about the preventive culture, folks. Enrique, who's still at his construction job despite his accident, says he's received training. He's not sure about any regulatory changes in his company, but things have undoubtedly taken a turn for the worse since his fall. "Unfortunately, it's just another part of the job in a construction company," he maintains.
Sara, the only one among us who believes no safety courses were implemented during her five years at the school, claims accidents in her sector are usually minor - more about slips, trips, and falls - rather than headline-grabbing, hard-hitting incidents.
Appropriate training lies at the heart of prevention, my friends. A University of Zaragoza study from 2009 already emphasized this, showcasing that groups with a greater percentage of workers who underwent courses had a lower chance of accidents. Regular, sustained training efforts have helped Felipe, who suffered his share of accidents in the '90s but feels relatively safe today thanks to training galore.
In agricultural work, advice and on-the-job examples keep workers safe. "You know what happened to Antonio, don't repeat the same mistakes," they say. A tough lesson indeed. Let's strive for a safer, accident-free Spain. Who's with me?
- The periodic occurrence of accidents in the health-and-wellness sector, such as Sara's motorcycle accident, may not make headlines but they do happen.
- The Ministry of Labor reported a significant number of incidents with sick leave in 2023, amounting to 600K, a slight drop from the previous year. However, it is unclear whether this decrease is due to better safety measures or a change in counting criteria.
- Construction and agriculture have the highest rates of accidents, according to data from the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration. Lack of preventive culture and speedy schedules contribute to creating an environment that poses potential risks for workers in these sectors.
