There has been a slight decrease in work accidents in Italy, according to the 2004 annual report of Inail (Italian national insurance against work accidents). However, immigrant workers - who account for almost 8% of the Italian labour force - show an incidence rate double that of their Italian colleagues.
Immigration in Italy is a relatively recent phenomenon, compared with other European countries. Over the last 10 years, its growth has been remarkable: in 1995, immigrants represented less than 1.5% of the population in Italy, increasing over threefold to more than 4% in 2004. Estimates vary widely: according to Istat 2005 (227Kb pdf; in Italian), the Italian statistics office, immigrants numbered less than two million in January 2004 (10% less than the figures reported by the Ministry of Internal Affairs), while the 2005 report on immigration by Caritas (82Kb pdf; in Italian), a Church aid association, puts the total at 2.7 million, including at least 450,000 minors.
Estimates about the share of immigrants in the labour force are equally confusing, because of the large proportion of undeclared work: according to the 2005 Caritas report, the most recent statistics available about this topic, immigrants represent almost 8% of the Italian labour force.
According to the 2004 Annual Report (in Italian) by Inail - the Italian national insurance agency against work accidents - more than 1,750,000 immigrants are insured against work accidents. Their figures have increased between 2000 and 2004 (up 79.3%), especially for women (up 122%), lending support to the Caritas estimates. The higher numbers can be explained both by the increase in a non-EU labour force and by the further regularisation introduced by the 2002 law on immigration. This legislation states that living permits are granted only to immigrants holding a regular work contract and that they must return to their countries when the contract expires.
However, according to some critics, such as Scevi, 2005 (in Italian), the 2005 regulation on immigration (Testo Unico sull’immigrazione) encourages employers to hire non-EU workers without a regular labour contract, thereby perpetuating undeclared work and making the workers’ residence in Italy more precarious.
Table 1: Non-EU workers insured against work accidents, by sex, 2000-2004
Non-EU workers insured against work accidents, by sex, 2000-2004 | Sex | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| Men | 688,712 | 794,961 | 973,109 | 1,064,192 | 1,106,888 |
| Women | 295,955 | 361,623 | 441,068 | 617,376 | 658,690 |
| Total | 984,667 | 1,156,584 | 1,414,177 | 1,681,568 | 1,765,578 |
| Total variance % over preceding year | | 17.5 | 22.3 | 18.9 | 5.0 |
| Total variance % over 2000 | | 17.5 | 43.6 | 70.8 | 79.3 |
| Female variance % over preceding year | | 22.2 | 22.0 | 40.0 | 6.7 |
| Female variance % over 2000 | | 22.2 | 49.0 | 108.6 | 122.6 |
Note: Acceding countries are classified as non-EU. Source: Inail, 2005, according to company income revenues by Ministry of Finance
Work accident rates
Non-EU workers were involved in almost 116,000 work accidents - more than 12% of declarations to Inail, or one and a half times their overall proportion in the Italian labour force. This represents a 6% increase compared with 2003, and a 25% increment on the 2002 figure.
The incidence rate is about 65 work accidents per 1,000 non-EU workers insured, compared with 40 work accidents per 1,000 of all workers insured. Gender differences are even greater: in general, the incidence rate for men is twice that for women, while for non-EU workers, the incidence rate among men is three times that of women.
Both work accidents and fatal accidents show a slight decrease since 2001, but have increased among non-EU workers (double the rate for work accidents, and a rise of 71% for fatal accidents). This can be attributed both to their concentration in the highest risk industries (metalworking, construction, transport, wood) and to their employment status: 80% of immigrant workers hold a non-permanent job, as outlined by Inail in its April statistical news (62Kb pdf).
Table 2: Work accidents, by country of origin and year, private sectors
Work accidents, by country of origin and year, private sectors | | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| Italy | 926,408 | 93.4 | 918,971 | 91.8 | 865,880 | 89.4 | 832,873 | 87.5 | 813,318 | 86.7 |
| EU countries | 7,516 | 0.8 | 8,466 | 0.8 | 9,554 | 1.0 | 9,559 | 1.0 | 9,517 | 1.0 |
| Non-EU countries | 57,920 | 5.8 | 73,744 | 7.4 | 92,746 | 9.6 | 109,323 | 11.5 | 115,883 | 12.3 |
| Total | 991,844 | 100.0 | 1,001,181 | 100.0 | 968,180 | 100.0 | 951,755 | 100.0 | 938,718 | 100.0 |
Note: Acceding EU countries are classified as non-EU. Source: Inail, 2005
Table 3: Fatal work accidents, by country of origin and year, private sectors
Fatal work accidents, by country of origin and year, private sectors | | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % |
| Italy | 1,285 | 92.5 | 1,393 | 91.0 | 1,324 | 90.9 | 1,243 | 87.6 | 1,081 | 85.6 |
| EU countries | 10 | 0.7 | 17 | 1.1 | 13 | 0.9 | 14 | 1.0 | 15 | 1.2 |
| Non-EU countries | 94 | 6.8 | 121 | 7.9 | 120 | 8.2 | 161 | 11.4 | 167 | 13.2 |
| Total | 1,389 | 100.0 | 1,531 | 100.0 | 1,457 | 100.0 | 1,418 | 100.0 | 1,263 | 100.0 |
Note: Acceding EU countries are classified as non-EU. Source: Inail, 2005
Inail’s April statistical news provides a breakdown by sex and nationality, limited to the nine most common types of work accident. Women experienced a greater increase in work accidents than men, thus reflecting their increased presence in the labour market, particularly among certain nationalities, such as Romanian and Yugoslavian.
Table 4: Accidents by country, 2002-2004
Accidents by country, 2002-2004 | | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2002-2004 variation |
| Morocco | 20,101 | 22,244 | 23,280 | 15.8 |
| Albania | 11,277 | 14,098 | 14,264 | 26.5 |
| Romania | 4,780 | 8,700 | 10,389 | 117.3 |
| Tunisia | 6,375 | 6,508 | 6,474 | 1.6 |
| Yugoslavia | 5,018 | 5,381 | 5,418 | 8.0 |
| Senegal | 4,458 | 4,662 | 4,631 | 3.9 |
| India | 1,941 | 2,370 | 2,667 | 37.4 |
| Pakistan | 1,560 | 2,205 | 2,579 | 65.3 |
| Egypt | 1,953 | 2,403 | 2,519 | 29.0 |
| Other countries | 35,283 | 39,938 | 43,212 | 22.5 |
| Total | 92,746 | 108,509 | 115,773 | 24.8 |
Source: Inail, 2005
Table 5: Work accidents affecting women, 2002-2004 (% of total accidents)
Work accidents affecting women, 2002-2004 | | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | Variation 2002-2004 |
| Morocco | 9.3 | 9.3 | 9.5 | 18.3 |
| Albania | 10.4 | 10.3 | 10.7 | 30.4 |
| Romania | 22.8 | 20.6 | 23.2 | 121.3 |
| Tunisia | 5.8 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 12.7 |
| Yugoslavia | 15.6 | 14.0 | 14.6 | 0.8 |
| Senegal | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 8.3 |
| India | 6.9 | 6.5 | 6.8 | 35.8 |
| Pakistan | 0.9 | 1.5 | 2.0 | 271.4 |
| Egypt | 5.0 | 5.2 | 3.3 | -13.4 |
| Other countries | 23.9 | 24.8 | 26.2 | 34.5 |
| Total | 15.2 | 15.5 | 16.6 | 35.8 |
Source: Inail, 2005
Commentary
The 2005 Inail report highlights, for the first time, work accidents among non-EU workers. Incidence rates are higher than average and are increasing, despite the fact that overall trends show a slight decline. This is due both to the workers’ concentration in the highest risk industries and to their predominantly non-permanent employment status. It corresponds to the description of high-strain jobs, according to the Theorell and Karasek typology outlined in a Foundation report on work-related stress (TN0502TR01).
According to the Isfol Quality of Work Survey (IT0503SR01), higher rates of work-related diseases and work accidents are associated with high-strain jobs, especially among those holding non-permanent contracts and undeclared jobs. As the Inail figures presented above show, this seems to be the prevailing condition among non-EU workers.
