The number of non-fatal accidents at work in the first half of 2020 decreased by 30 per cent when compared to the corresponding period in 2019.

Three fatal accidents at work were reported during these first six months - similar to the number of reports in 2019.

The data, provided by the National Statistics Office, includes cases for which an injury benefit claim form was submitted to the Department of Social Security.

In all, 1,108 people were involved in a non-fatal accident at work between January and June. A sixth took place in the construction sector.

Another 15.4 per cent of the accidents occurred in the manufacturing sector followed by the transportation and storage sector (13.8 per cent).

When compared to the same period in 2019, the number of accidents decreased by 84 in the manufacturing sector and increased by 10 in real estate activities.

Almost half (44.4 per cent) of the injuries affected the upper extremities of the body, such as the fingers and hands.

Wounds, superficial injuries, dislocations, sprains and strains were the most common types of injuries.

Meanwhile, data shows that a quarter of the accidents at work took place in enterprises with 50 to 249 employees.

Fatal accidents

Between January and June of 2020, the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) reported three fatal accidents at work, at par with the corresponding period of 2019.