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At 1,179, non-fatal accidents at work decreased by 5.5 per cent when compared to the same quarter in the preceding year. There was one fatal accident at work during the period under review.

These figures cover accidents at work that were reported to the Department of Social Security from July to September 2007. The administrative records for the injury benefit of the DSS indicate that 1,179 persons had an accident in the course of their work in the period under review. Accordingly, the number of accidents in the third quarter of this year decreased by 69 (-5.5 per cent) over the same period in the preceding year.

Many work-related accidents occurred in the economic sectors of manufacturing (31.9 per cent), construction (16.1 per cent), transport, storage, and communication (12.6 per cent), and wholesale and retail trade (9.5 per cent).

Accidents at work mostly concern people employed in elementary occupations and craft/trades work. The given statistics indicate that 609 cases (51.6 per cent) concerned people in elementary occupations, while 206 cases (17.5 per cent) affected people in craft/trades work.

In the period under review, 47.8 per cent of accidents at work occurred to persons who were under 35 years of age. The data indicate that 563 of these accidents occurred to persons in this age cohort.

The data also indicate that most work-related injuries occur in the upper extremities of the body. Wounds and superficial injuries are the most common types of injuries. Actually, wounds and superficial injuries featured in 528 (44.8 per cent) of these mishaps.

The Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) reported that in July to September 2007, one man died at work. During the same period in the preceding year, three men died at work.