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Serious Injuries in Italy doubled in a single year
Eurostat records a worrying situation relating to accidents at work throughout the European Union with a significant increase especially in Italy. In 2020, the deaths at work, across the old continent, were 3,355, with 776 of which occurred in Italy, a nation with the sad record of growth. Despite the data collected show an almost stable trend throughout Europe, in Italy the cases are increasing by up to 58% only in 2020, compared to the previous year.
The data analyzed by Eurostat takes into account the number of days of work inability by the victim, as the main reference in establishing the severity of the accident and Italy has seen an extremely worrying growth in serious cases in recent years with despite the pandemic and the many days of lockdown experienced by the Italians. However, it should be noted that, despite the growing number of serious cases in Italy, accidents with just 7-13 days of absence from work are to be considered more frequent, as in 2019 and concern, on average, about 700,000 European men and women.
The situation of working conditions in Italy has always been in the spotlight but probably more needs to be done to prevent the number of fatal injuries from growing further. In 2020, 2.7 million accidents at work were recorded across Europe and over 3,000 were fatal accidents, down from more than 3 million in 2019. The country with the most cases is Germany with over 766,000 accidents, followed by France with over 624,000 and Spain with nearly 389,000. Italy, despite being in fourth place overall in Europe for the number of accidents at work, remains the nation with the most significant increase, compared to the European average, however, in decline in 2020.
Another significant figure highlights how injuries have decreased in Europe in every sector except the health sector, which records 17% more accidents compared to 2019 due to the pandemic and the inconvenience caused by the emergencies recorded in the health facilities in suffering for Covid in 2020.
To worry the analysts, there is also a certain habituation of the Bel Paese to the problem of accidents at work managed, so far, with an alarming superficiality, as if the loss of almost 3 workers a day, due to accidents caused by bad professional conditions which they are subjected to, is now a given to live with.
According to the CISL General Secretary, Luigi Sbarra, companies and trade unions, alone, cannot effectively deal with the scourge in question and, therefore, a constant commitment by all institutions is needed to develop fundamental implementing decrees that can stem the problem at the origin.
Technology can represent a valid help in assisting companies in improving safety at work and Luigi Zucchelli, Director of the Integrated Technical and CNS Development Area, recently spoke on the issue by presenting some latest generation technologies such as the IoT and the Digital Twin, which allow to manage different sensors on objects and people in the workplace to collect fundamental data to better structure a common and shared strategy on professional safety.
The collection of data relating to work habits and the operation of machinery and devices used in companies could be used to develop new production methods capable of minimizing problems related to safety at work. The new technologies presented by some of the most important Italian and foreign companies could be the key to a future in which working can finally be a right free from danger.
Alessandro Fiorentino