Workplace accidents up 20 percent

the period under review.
The figures were revealed by Acting Labour and Social Services Minister Theresa Makone during the National Conference on Safety and Health at Work recently.
“The total number of serious accidents as at August 2011 was 2 605, with 50 fatalities.
“As for this year, by August 2012 the total number of reported accidents rose to 3 258, with 63 fatalities,” she said.
She said the continued upward trend in accidents statistics was unacceptable, especially in view of the context of an economy operating at approximately half of its capacity.
“Safety performance in almost all the sectors of the economy remains my ministry’s heartache. In an economy operating at below half its capacity, the continued upward trend in accidents statistics is unacceptable.”
Indications, however, are that the country’s workplace accidents figures could be underestimating the real level of accidents happening on the ground since the official statistics only reflect injuries and illnesses that occur in formally registered workplaces.
This is particularly so in view of the fact that the Zimbabwean economy is largely dominated by small-to-medium enterprises and informal businesses.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), more than 337 million accidents happen on the job each year, resulting, together with occupational diseases, in more than 2,3 million deaths annually.
At the same time, another 268 million non-fatal workplace accidents happen and result in an average of three lost workdays per casualty per year.
Zimbabwe has experienced some of its worst work-related accidents in the past dating back to 1972 when 427 mine workers perished at Hwange Colliery’s Kamandama Mine.