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Occupational Injuries in Germany: Population-Wide National Survey Data Emphasize the Importance of Work-Related Factors

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  • Alexander Rommel
  • Gianni Varnaccia
  • Nils Lahmann
  • Jan Kottner
  • Lars Eric Kroll

Abstract

Unintentional injuries cause much of the global mortality burden, with the workplace being a common accident setting. Even in high-income economies, occupational injury figures remain remarkably high. Because risk factors for occupational injuries are prone to confounding, the present research takes a comprehensive approach. To better understand the occurrence of occupational injuries, sociodemographic factors and work- and health-related factors are tested simultaneously. Thus, the present analysis aims to develop a comprehensive epidemiological model that facilitates the explanation of varying injury rates in the workplace. The representative phone survey German Health Update 2010 provides information on medically treated occupational injuries sustained in the year prior to the interview. Data were collected on sociodemographics, occupation, working conditions, health-related behaviors, and chronic diseases. For the economically active population (18–70 years, n = 14,041), the 12-month prevalence of occupational injuries was calculated with a 95% confidence interval (CI). Blockwise multiple logistic regression was applied to successively include different groups of variables. Overall, 2.8% (95% CI 2.4–3.2) of the gainfully employed population report at least one occupational injury (women: 0.9%; 95% CI 0.7–1.2; men: 4.3%; 95% CI 3.7–5.0). In the fully adjusted model, male gender (OR 3.16) and age 18–29 (OR 1.54), as well as agricultural (OR 5.40), technical (OR 3.41), skilled service (OR 4.24) or manual (OR 5.12), and unskilled service (OR 3.13) or manual (OR 4.97) occupations are associated with higher chances of occupational injuries. The same holds for frequent stressors such as heavy carrying (OR 1.78), working in awkward postures (OR 1.46), environmental stress (OR 1.48), and working under pressure (OR 1.41). Among health-related variables, physical inactivity (OR 1.47) and obesity (OR 1.73) present a significantly higher chance of occupational injuries. While the odds for most work-related factors were as expected, the associations for health-related factors such as smoking, drinking, and chronic diseases were rather weak. In part, this may be due to context-specific factors such as safety and workplace regulations in high-income countries like Germany. This assumption could guide further research, taking a multi-level approach to international comparisons.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexander Rommel & Gianni Varnaccia & Nils Lahmann & Jan Kottner & Lars Eric Kroll, 2016. "Occupational Injuries in Germany: Population-Wide National Survey Data Emphasize the Importance of Work-Related Factors," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 11(2), pages 1-16, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0148798
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0148798
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Nakata, Akinori & Ikeda, Tomoko & Takahashi, Masaya & Haratani, Takashi & Hojou, Minoru & Fujioka, Yosei & Araki, Shunichi, 2006. "Non-fatal occupational injury among active and passive smokers in small- and medium-scale manufacturing enterprises in Japan," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 63(9), pages 2452-2463, November.
    2. Ryan, J. & Zwerling, C. & Orav, E.J., 1992. "Occupational risks associated with cigarette smoking: A prospective study," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 82(1), pages 29-32.
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    1. Yue Wu & David C. Schwebel & Guoqing Hu, 2018. "Disparities in Unintentional Occupational Injury Mortality between High-Income Countries and Low- and Middle-Income Countries: 1990–2016," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-11, October.
    2. Ji Nam Park & Mi Ah Han & Jong Park & So Yeon Ryu, 2016. "Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms and Related Factors in Korean Employees: The Third Korean Working Conditions Survey (2011)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-9, April.
    3. Sung-Shil Lim & Jin-Ha Yoon & Jeongbae Rhie & Suk Won Bae & Jihyun Kim & Jong-Uk Won, 2018. "The Relationship between Free Press and Under-Reporting of Non-Fatal Occupational Injuries with Data from Representative National Indicators, 2015: Focusing on the Lethality Rate of Occupational Injur," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(12), pages 1-12, December.
    4. Hanan S. Tuhul & Amer El-Hamouz & A. Rasem Hasan & Hanan A. Jafar, 2021. "Development of a Conceptual Framework for Occupational Safety and Health in Palestinian Manufacturing Industries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(3), pages 1-28, February.
    5. Ralf Dethlefsen & Luisa Orlik & Martin Müller & Aristomenis K. Exadaktylos & Stefan M. Scholz & Jolanta Klukowska-Rötzler & Mairi Ziaka, 2022. "Work-Related Injuries among Insured Construction Workers Presenting to a Swiss Adult Emergency Department: A Retrospective Study (2016–2020)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-16, September.
    6. Dieter Verhaest & Stef Adriaenssens, 2022. "Compensating wage differentials in formal and informal jobs," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(1), pages 106-126, February.

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