Y2023-S1 Fatal accidents at work

The themed investigation studied the fatal accidents at work that occurred in 2023. During the year, there were 23 fatal accidents at work, approximately half of which took place in the agricultural and forestry sector. The number of accidents in other sectors was lower. All of those who died in the accidents at work were men, and their average age was 49 years. Over half of the victims of the accidents were working alone when the accident occurred.

The most common type of accident involved a heavy load or object falling on top of the victim during work. The next most common types of accident after this were falling or getting caught in between moving parts of a machine. Therefore, these conditions at work should be recognised as hazardous, and special attention should be paid to safety at work.

The person who died in a fatal accident at work in the agricultural and forestry sector was usually the entrepreneur at the farm, a retired entrepreneur or a family member. Agricultural and forestry work is exceptionally diverse, with changing conditions. It is common in the sector for people to work and manage situations independently with the methods and equipment available. The occupational safety of the sector is also affected by the safety of the work practices of independently working entrepreneurs and their use of the available information on occupational safety remaining dependent on the entrepreneurs' own initiative and resources.

With regard to other sectors, the investigation detected a need to develop occupational safety in the taxi sector, among other things. The investigation studied the threat of violence in particular as a part of the safety of a taxi driver at work. National defence was also examined as a separate sector. In the surface rescue training by the Navy, a need to develop and provide instructions for precise procedures to ensure the safety of surface rescue activities was identified.

Regardless of the sector, it was found that the occupational safety awareness and competence of small companies was insufficient. There were also deficiencies in awareness of the occupational safety duties included in the role of an employer. Because the monitoring and guidance of occupational safety and health are focused on protecting the employees, the occupational safety competence of an independently working entrepreneur remains dependent on the entrepreneur's own initiative.

In large companies or joint workplaces of several companies, deficiencies were discovered in the coordination of work and transmitting information between the parties. In a joint workplace with several operators, deficiencies in the planning and coordination of work and occupational safety cooperation endanger the safety of individual operators and the workplace as a whole.

In several cases, the aim to streamline the work emerged. This occurred regardless of the sector. The aim to advance and streamline the work manifested, for example, in skipping work stages that would ensure safety at work or failing to use tools and equipment. Safety equipment was also bypassed, especially if bypassing it had been made possible. Work practices seeking to streamline work often develop gradually and without planning. The operators do not necessarily recognise the risks related to the methods. In fact, the safety of work practices should be assessed repeatedly and actively. The smooth flow of work should also be supported from the perspective of occupational safety.

Based on the themed investigation, the Safety Investigation Authority recommends that

• The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health develops procedures ensuring that entrepreneurs comply with the same kind of occupational safety practices in their own work that are required by the Work Safety Act for the occupational safety and health of employees.
• The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency prepares methods for improving occupational safety in the taxi sector.
• The association Real Estate Employers and the Association of Finnish Local and Regional Authorities warn the users of gritting equipment of the hazards related to them and instruct the operators in the field to ensure that gritting equipment is used appropriately and safely.
• The Finnish Defence Forces review the instructions, procedures and equipment for surface rescue activities, including the rescue measures and equipment, and corrects any deficiencies discovered in them.