Renewed efforts to tackle high industrial accident rate

The rate of industrial accidents in Spain is currently very high and is on the increase. Trade unions claim that the high accident rate is due to high levels of subcontracting in the sectors concerned. In a further effort to address the problem, the government has created a Public Prosecutor’s Office for industrial accidents, which will focus on occupational risk prevention and ensure compliance with legislation on health and safety at work.

The high industrial accident rate is a central issue in the Spanish labour market (ES9904215F, ES0209201N). Despite the measures that have been introduced, based mainly on monitoring by the labour inspectorate and trying to ensure compliance with current legislation, the number of industrial accidents continues to increase.

Evolution of industrial accidents

A study by the General Union of Workers (Unión General de Trabajadores, UGT) examines the evolution of industrial accidents that compel the worker affected by the accident to take time off work. The data cover all areas of Spain up to March 2006, and are based on figures from the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (Ministerio de Trabajo y Asuntos Sociales, MTAS). The study shows that the downward trend in industrial accidents that began in 2002 came to an abrupt end in 2005, when industrial accidents necessitating time off work increased by 4.5% over the previous year. This trend increased even further between January and March 2006, when there were 27,372 more accidents recorded than in the same period in 2005, representing a substantial increase of 12.6%.

The upward trend in the first quarter of 2006 was observed in all sectors except agriculture, which showed a decline in the accident rate (-4.18%). The construction sector showed the highest increase over the previous year (17.3%), followed by services (12.9%) and industry (10.6%).

A positive trend noted was the reduction in the number of serious or fatal industrial accidents. In 2005, the number of fatal accidents fell by 6.2% in comparison with 2004. In the first quarter of 2006, a further small decline in fatal accidents (1.3%) and a fall in serious accidents (9.9%) were observed. However, in that three-month period, there was a sharp increase in work-related traffic accidents (16.5%), and a 10.5%. increase in fatal accidents.

The regional distribution of industrial accidents causing workers to take time off work showed an increase of 25.4% in Madrid and 27% in Catalonia. On the other hand, there was a 39.6% fall in Ceuta and Melilla, and an increase of only 2.3% in the Basque Country. Overall, therefore, there was a significant increase in two of the main regions of economic development, and a slight increase in the third region.

Office for industrial accidents

The trade unions believe that the high industrial accident rate is due to the business strategy of subcontracting, which transfers risks to small companies and hinders adherence to health and safety laws. They have, therefore, called for an increase in the number of labour inspectors, as was stipulated in the recent agreement to improve growth and employment (ES0604049I); the unions have also recommended the establishment of legal authorities dedicated specifically to this issue.

The Trade Union Confederation of Workers’ Commissions (Comisiones Obreras, CC.OO) and UGT are pleased with the recent establishment of a special ‘industrial accidents’ division of the Public Prosecutor’s Office (Fiscalía de Siniestralidad Laboral), which will focus exclusively on occupational risk prevention and compliance with the legislation on health and safety at work.

The trade unions consider that, given sufficient resources, the office should be able to reduce the number of industrial accidents through enforcing active measures, such as prosecuting employers for negligence; this could even lead to prison sentences for employers who fail to comply with the risk prevention regulations, even if no fatal or serious accident occurs.

However, the Spanish Confederation of Employers’ Organisations (Confederación Española de Organizaciones Empresariales, CEOE) considers that the legal option is not the solution, and that such means should only be used when a criminal act is proved. CEOE believes that tackling the problem of the high industrial accident rate can best be done by facilitating a culture of prevention among employers and employees.

Commentary

Measures to address the problem of accidents in the workplace need to be further developed in order to comply with the current legislation in this area. The complex working environment of subcontracting, temporary employment and instability adds to this problem, and contributes to the high number of industrial accidents in Spain.

Martí López, QUIT-UAB