Begović: 22 people died from workplace injuries last year, safety levels need to be raised

Investing in workplace safety is not a cost but a quality investment, stated Vitomir Begović, director of the Institute for the Improvement of Workplace Safety of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, during an open house event at the institute on Tuesday, emphasizing that the level of responsibility and safety in the work process needs to be raised to a much higher level.

At a press conference, he presented data indicating that in Croatia, employers reported 18,036 workplace injuries in 2017, which is 9.1% more than the previous year, and of those, there were 1,678 serious workplace injuries, or six percent more than the previous year. Out of the reported 18,036 workplace injuries, 14,829 were recognized, which is an increase of 8.2%.

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Last year, there were 22 fatal workplace injuries, which is 22% more than the previous year, primarily in construction and forestry, as well as in smaller companies. For every thousand workers, 12.2 were injured last year, resulting in a workplace injury rate of 12.2% last year, compared to 11.5% the year before.

Furthermore, he highlighted that due to workplace injuries and occupational diseases, 2,627 workers were absent every day, and when including illnesses of workers who are in the work process, that number rises to as many as 26,214 workers.

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Begović noted that from workplace injuries, 445 workers died from 2004 to 2017, emphasizing that this is a significant number that warns and indicates that there is still an inappropriate attitude towards obligations in the field of workplace safety and that an equality sign can be placed between what causes workplace injuries and the human factor.

He stressed that all conditions exist to protect workers in the work process, but if those responsible and workers do not apply regulations, consequences arise. Therefore, in collaboration with the Ministry of Science and Education, a process has been initiated to emphasize the area of workplace safety more strongly in educational curricula at all levels of education.