The long-term work of the construction industry to develop safety has produced good results. This is evident from the statistical publication of the Association of Accident Insurance Institutions. Favorable development can be seen both in the number of work accidents and in the frequency of accidents, which has decreased by almost a fifth in ten years.
According to Rakennusteollisuus RT's own statistics, the accident frequency of its member companies was 17,5 in September. The number is about a third lower than the average for the entire industry.
In particular, large companies in the construction industry have invested in development work related to occupational safety and are therefore also leading the course of development in the right direction. In large companies, the number of accidents has decreased significantly more than statistical averages, although occupational safety issues have been handled in an exemplary manner in several smaller companies as well.
One of the most significant changes for the better has been that work accidents affecting the head area have decreased by 24,5 percent compared to last year. The trend is very good news, because there is always the possibility of very serious damage in head accidents. The positive development is largely explained by the better protection of the head in construction work. The use of helmets fastened with a chin strap has clearly increased in recent years.
A similar, clearly visible change in the longer-term statistics can also be observed, for example, in the number of eye injuries, which collapsed quite soon after the legislation began to require the use of protective glasses. Personal eye protection of the type required by the work and working conditions must always be used in construction work.
There is also a noticeable decrease in the statistics in the severity of work accidents. In the construction industry, an increasing proportion of accidents are minor, i.e. leading to less than four days of incapacity for work. The number of work accidents leading to 4-30 days of incapacity for work has decreased in ten years by about ten percentage points. Although the current year has been dark in terms of fatal accidents in the construction industry, it has also been possible to significantly reduce workplace deaths in the industry in the longer term.
In the construction industry, there is still a division between companies that manage occupational safety well and poorly. Although the direction is right, RT aims to speed up development and get all the companies in the industry involved better than at present.
Rakennusteollisuus RT measures the accident frequency of its member companies every month, i.e. the number of accidents per million working hours. In the most recent review, i.e. in September, 201 companies were involved, which represent significant players in the field.
- Tvl's announcement (13.11.2015 November XNUMX):
The number and frequency of work accidents decreased in 2014 - Tvl: Work accidents - statistical publication 2015
- The results of RT's accident surveys