Home > The news of EUROGIP and occupational risks in Europe >
The 2023 figures show an increase in the number of reported accidents at work (49,088) and more than double the number of accidents resulting in more than six months’ absence from work compared to 2019. Danish doctors also reported a total of 16,328 occupational diseases, which is 5% less than before Covid-19.
When it comes to accidents at work, Lotte Manniche Groth-Andersen, Deputy director of the Danish Work Environment Authority, admits that “the figures do not make it possible to determine whether the increase in reported accidents at work is due to the fact that there have been more of them, or that more companies are reporting them, or a combination of the two. Whatever the case, the number of accidents at work is too high and needs to be reduced”.
In 2023, the five sectors with the highest number of accidents per 10,000 employees were:
- Water, sewerage and waste management: 501 accidents
- Construction: 374 accidents
- Crèches and home care: 343 accidents
- Construction and demolition: 337 accidents
- Police, emergency services and prisons: 332 accidents.
The main causes are falls (29% of accidents) and main injuries are sprains and strains (40% of all injuries). In 2023, 32 fatal accidents at work were recorded (compared with an average of 38 for the period 2019-2022).
In terms of occupational diseases, mental diseases (4,728 cases) and musculoskeletal disorders (4,721 cases) are the most common. The former represents an increase of 5% compared to 2019, while the latter is decreasing. Each of these two pathologies accounts for 29% of all reported occupational diseases. In addition to these two diseases, hearing, skin and respiratory diseases are also reported.
