New EU-OSHA Report Addresses Cost of Illnesses and Incidents

A new report by European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) addresses the cost of incidents and illnesses in the workplace. The report, titled Estimating the Cost of Accidents and Ill-Health at Work: A Review of Methodologies, uses the findings of numerous studies to identify the costs of workplace incidents, as well as the costs of occupational illnesses such as cancer, asthma and back pain.

The report finds that five primary categories of costs exist:

1. Productivity costs, which are related to decreases in output or production.
2. Medical costs, including direct costs (e.g., pharmaceuticals) and indirect costs (e.g., caregiver time).
3. Quality of life losses. This refers to the monetary valuation of the decreases in quality of life, including physical pain and suffering.
4. Administration costs such as applying for social security payments or reporting on a workplace incident.
5. Insurance costs, including compensation payments and insurance premiums.

Click here to download the report.