The Value of Occupational Safety and Health and the Societal Costs of Work-Related Injuries and Diseases

1. Safety and health at work is everyone’s concern. It’s good for you. It’s good for business.
The Value of Occupational Safety and Health and the
Societal Costs of Work-Related Injuries and Diseases
©SHUTTERSTOCK/Rawpixel.com
XXII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work
Toronto/Bilbao, September 20-23, 2021
Dietmar Elsler
Project Manager, EU-OSHA

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https://osha.europa.eu
EU-OSHA projects on economic aspects of OSH
 Business case on society level
• Estimating the cost of accidents and ill-health at work: A review of methodologies (2014)
• overview of the availability and quality of national and international data sources that could be
used to develop a European level cost calculation (2017)
• Estimate of global and EU costs for Singapore World Congress (2017), Data-Visualisation
• The value of occupational safety and health and the societal costs of work-related injuries and
diseases (2019), estimate of costs of five countries based on national data sources
 Busines case on enterprise level
• The business case for safety and health: Cost–benefit analyses of interventions in small and
medium-sized enterprises (2014)
 Combining society and enterprises level through economic incentives
• How to create economic incentives in occupational safety and health: A practical guide (2011)

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https://osha.europa.eu
Cost estimation 2019 – % of GDP by country
(without intangible costs)
Poland
5.0%
GDP
Germany
2.7% GDP
Finland
2.3%
GDP
The
Netherlands
2.7% GDP
Italy
4.0%
GDP
Country GDP Total Cost
(In million)
Finland 2.3% € 4,846
Germany 2.7% € 81,572
The Netherlands 2.7% € 18,605
Italy 4.0% € 67,452
Poland 5.0% € 21,470

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https://osha.europa.eu
Cost estimation 2019 – costs by stakeholder
63% 61%
73% 67%
79%
22% 20%
15% 20%
11%
15% 19% 13% 13% 10%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Finland Germany Netherland Italy Poland
Worker Employer Society

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https://osha.europa.eu
Policy impact can already be seen at EU-level
Highlights of impact
• Opinion on costs and benefits of OSH from the
European Economic and Social Committee, for
the Finish EU Presidency in 2019
• The Austrian chamber of labour published a
national cost estimation following this research
• Scientific publication: Economic burden of work
injuries and diseases: a framework and application
in five European Union countries, Springer,
January 2021, BMC Public Health
European Economic and Social Committee
SOC/623
Investments in OSH: costs and benefits
OPINION
Section for Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship
Summary of the costs and benefits of investments in occupational safety and health (OSH)
(Exploratory opinion requested by the Finnish Presidency)
Rapporteur: Adam ROGALEWSKI
Co-rapporteur: Ana BONTEA
SOC/623 – EESC-2019-02545-00-00-AS-TRA (EN) 1/1
EN
Co-rapporteur: Ana BONTEA
C o n t a c t soc@eesc.europa.eu
Administrator Valeria ATZORI
Document date 17/09/2019

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Conclusions
 The cost to society is significant for the EU
EURO 460 billion (2019, without UK), 3,3% of GDP
 The main cost driver is work-related cancer,
followed by MSDs
 Workers and their families have the highest burden of
all stakeholders
 Promote positive business case for OSH at
•Enterprise level
•Society level

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https://osha.europa.eu
EU-OSHA web section - Good OSH is good for business:
https://osha.europa.eu/en/themes/good-osh-is-good-for-business
Report “The value of occupational safety and health and the societal costs of work-related injuries and diseases ”
(2019):
https://osha.europa.eu/en/tools-and-publications/publications/value-occupational-safety-and-health-and-societal-
costs-work/view
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