Markku Aaltonen , PhD(Eng), Team Leader

1. INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE “THE SUCCESSFUL WORK SAFELY AND HEALTHILY”7 November 2008, Ljubljana, SloveniaCosts and benefits as a result of safety and health at work measures: implications for an individual, a business and a society as a whole Markku Aaltonen, PhD(Eng), Team Leader Finnish Institute of Occupational Health Occupational Safety Team Helsinki, Finland markku.aaltonen@ttl.fi

2. Work-related Fatalities – EU 25 210 million economically active, employment 192 million (Source: European Agency for Safety and Health at Work) - 151,300 fatalities attributed to work-related accidents and diseases in EU, and within that - 142,400 fatalities attributed to work-related diseases in EU, and - 8,900 fatalities caused by accidents at work in the EU, - 31, 000 - 56,000 fatalities attributed to hazardous substances at work in the EU, (asbestos 21, 000) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

3. Aims to reduce incidence rate of occupational accidents by 25 % during the strategy period in the EU-27. • The following actions are proposed: • guarantee the proper implementation of EU legislation • support SMEs in the implementation of the legislation in force • adapt the legal framework to changes in the workplace and simplify it, particularly in view of SMEs • promote the development and implementation of national strategies • encourage changes in the behaviour of workers and encourage their employers to adopt health-focused approaches • finalise the methods for identifying and evaluating new potential risks • improve the tracking of progress, and • promote health and safety in international level Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

4. Why occupational safety and health? • Safety is a value. Accident-free work place should be a human right for every worker. • Requirements of safety legislation should be fulfilled. • Safety is a part of quality of production. Accidents and incidents indicate problems in work processes. • Accidents have always unwanted consequences. Accidents cause costs for individuals, companies and socielty. • Safety culture is part of the company image. It is easy to loose it butvery difficult to get it back. • OSH can even be an integral part of company competitive advantage. Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

5. Why OSH economics? (Bjurström 2006) • Optimising well-being • Avoiding extra costs • Lack of knowledge • Use of economic approach in decision making • motivation • better understanding • choices between social goals • Necessary investments are part of production costs • Productivity effects are the most important Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

6. A classification of safety and health costs and benefits (Aaltonen & Söderqvist 1988) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

7. Competitiveness and safety Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

8. Costs of work-related diseases and accidents in Finland in 2000 (Bjurström 2006) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

9. Distribution of costs for work-related diseases and accidents in Finland in 2000 (Bjurström 2006) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

10. Estimated total costs per worker due to poor working conditions in the Netherlands 2001 (Koningsveld 2006) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

11. The costs due to poor working conditions in the Netherlands (Koningsveld 2006) • The total cost for the Netherlands is equivalent to 2,96% of the gross national product. • Two diagnoses are responsible for 83% of the cost of work related health effects: musculoskeletal disorders (43%) and psychosocial diseases (40%). • Other diagnoses that result in relatively high cost are: diseases of the heart and the vascular system (5%), nervous system (4% incl. eyes, ears) and occupational accidents (4%). Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

12. Costs of OSH and company profitability Accidents Sick leaves Early retirement Personnel turnover Cost of prevention Profitability Quality 0 Costs Revenues - + Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

13. The study in Texas industry – Costs of prevention and accidents at work*(Rinefort 1977) *) costs are indicated as procent of workers´ wages Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

14. Professor Foster C. Rinefort "Pay it now or pay it later" "You must have a right cocktail" Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

15. European model for economic effects of safety and health at company level (Mossink & de Greef 2002) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

16. Effects of OSH interventions (Koningsveld 2006) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

17. The cost benefit – analysis ofuse of lifting devices for patients ( de Greef et al 2004) • In a division of the A.Z. Sint-Lucas Sint-Jozef in Bruges, lower back pain was a frequent complaint of nurses caused by the manual lifting of bed-ridden patients. • The project aimed at implementing the use of lifting machines for patients and training the nurses in the use of these devices. • Following indicators were used: • Costs: investment and maintenance cost, training of the employees, loss of time due to the use of the devices, stock cost • Benefits: lower number of lost days due to back pain, better working conditions (less stress), better atmosphere, compliance with legislation, avoided administration costs, avoided cost for hiring temporary staff, quality of the service to the patient (the patient is treated in a safer and more comfortable way). Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

18. The cost benefit – analysis ofuse of lifting devices for patients, in euros(de Greef et al 2004) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

19. The Balloon model developed by Johanson & Johrén (Kupi et al 1998) Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

20. Following questions are important when evaluating the amount of losses (Uusi-Rauva et al 1988) • Scope, i.e. which cost items or damage types are included in the calculation? • Timing, i.e. how long is the period to be considered in the calcyulation? • Measuring, i.e. by what means and accuracy could the amount of losses be evaluated and calculated? • Pricing, i.e. how will the losses be priced and what unit prices will be used? Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /

21. References • Aaltonen, M. & Söderqvist, A.: Costs of accidents in the furniture industry - A Nordic study. Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment & Health 14 (1988): suppl 1, 103-104. • Aaltonen, M.: A consequence and cost analysis of occupational accidents in the furniture industry. Doctoral dissertation. People and Work 6. Finnish Institute of Occupational Health. Helsinki 1996. 68 p. + 6 app. • Bjurström, L-M., The working environment and productivity. In: Proceedings of the European Productivity Conference, 30.8 – 1.9 2006, Espoo, Finland. www.epc2006.fi • de Greef M, van den Broek K. Quality of the working environment and productivity. European Agency for Safety and Health at work, 2004 • Koningsveld, A.P., The costs incurred by poor working conditions - A burden to society, a prospect to companies. In: Proceedings of the European Productivity Conference, 30.8 – 1.9 2006, Espoo, Finland. • Kankaanpää E, van Tulder M, Aaltonen M, De Greef M. Economics for occupational safety and health. SJWEH Suppl. 2008;(5):9–13. • Kupi, E., Sumelathti, J., Bjurström, L., ‘Working environment in the service sector’, Economics of the working environment, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Tampere, 1997 • Mossink, J., De Greef , M., Inventory of socio-economic costs of work accidents, report, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2002 • Rinefort, F., A new look at occupational safety - A cost benefit analysis of selected Texas industries. Prof. Saf. (1977) 22, 9, 8-13. Finnish Institute of Occupational Health /