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To date, nearly 1,000 serious incidents in work related to the coronavirus have been reported to the Swedish Work Environment Authority. Most concern attention and care.
“We are facing a situation that we have never faced before,” says the Deputy Director General of the Swedish Work Environment Authority.
So far, the Swedish Working Environment Authority has been informed of a total of nearly 1 000 serious incidents at work related to the coronavirus.
Almost nine out of ten reports refer to care and attention, and most frequently address the risk of being infected with covid-19, according to statistics from the Swedish Work Environment Authority.
– It could be that he has been exposed without protective equipment or that he has been with a user and that it has subsequently been positive, says Håkan Olsson, Deputy Director General of the Swedish Work Environment Authority to TT.
Statistics also show how many safety ombud stops and requests for intervention from the Swedish Work Environment Authority were made in connection with corona and covid-19. In addition to healthcare, there is also another industry that stands out.
– We have had many safety stops in the transport sector, for example, with respect to buses and public transport. But also in the public sector, such as the Police and the Prison and Probation Service, says Håkan Olsson.
Although notifications continue to arrive, a decrease is now visible compared to previous weeks during the pandemic. Weeks 16, 17, and 18 received around 200 reports of serious incidents each week. This week, the number of records has been reduced to 126.
But so far, it’s too early to say there is a trend violation and that incidents related to the crown and covid-19 are now declining in the workplace, says Håkan Olsson.
– Perhaps it is too soon to say that we are seeing a change. But if we continue to have a small number of notifications, it may be a sign that risk assessments and the opportunity to work in a safe environment have failed.
He says there was very little knowledge in the workplace when the coronavirus began to devastate Sweden.
– We are facing a situation that we have never faced before and it came quickly. Now everyone has worked in an incredibly deserved way to ensure that both users and employees can work in a safe environment. At the same time, we see that more can be done to prevent risks in the workplace.
According to Håkan Olsson, the reduced number of notifications may also be a sign of better access to protective equipment.
– The flow of protective equipment is increasing in the country, both in terms of hosting from abroad and starting a national production of approved equipment.
Although Sweden is still in the midst of the crown pandemic and an ongoing crisis, Håkan Olsson hopes and believes that, in the end, positive effects can emerge in the workplace from the crisis.
– We will not return to an equivalent working life, but to a changed working life with a greater awareness of the risks of the working environment from which we will have learned a lot.
Obligation to notify
The employer is always obliged to prevent risks of illness or accidents at work.
When a serious personal injury, serious incident or death occurs in a workplace, the employer is obliged, in accordance with 3 3a of the Work Environment Law, to report it to the Work Environment Authority.
There is no need to report personal injury, but there can also be serious incidents where there is a danger to life and health.
Source: Arbetsmijöverket
stop safety officers
If there is an immediate and serious danger to the life or health of workers, the safety representative has the right to interrupt work, in accordance with Chapter 6, Section 7 of the Work Environment Law. This is called an ombud safety stop.
The safety officer should inform the employer that he believes there is an immediate and serious danger to the life and health of the workers and that, therefore, work has stopped.
If the employer agrees to the shutdown, work will not begin until the safety representative and the employer agree that the hazards are removed and the job is safe.
If the employer does not agree that there is a serious danger, he will contact the Swedish Work Environment Authority, which can decide whether the job should continue to be canceled or not.
Source: Work Environment Authority.
