Fatal Workplace Accidents Rise Sharply in Cyprus
Despite Fewer Non-Fatal Accidents, Cyprus Records Increase in Workplace Fatalities Compared to 2017
A 35.5% decrease in non-fatal workplace accidents was recorded in Cyprus in 2022 compared to 2017, significantly higher than the 4.6% reduction observed across the EU. However, fatal workplace accidents in Cyprus rose sharply, increasing from just two cases in 2017 to nine in 2022, while the number of fatal accidents across the EU remained at similar levels. These figures were published by Eurostat.
According to Eurostat, a total of 2.97 million non-fatal workplace accidents were reported in the EU in 2022, incidents after which workers had to be absent from work for at least four days to recover—sometimes for as long as six months. In the same year, 3,286 fatal workplace accidents were recorded across the EU.
Compared to 2017, the EU saw 4.6% fewer workplace accidents in 2022, representing a reduction of 143,031 cases. In Cyprus, the decrease was much steeper, with accidents dropping from 2,070 cases in 2017 to 1,335 cases in 2022.
In Cyprus, the majority of the 1,335 recorded workplace accidents in 2022 occurred in agriculture (1,184 cases), followed by the hospitality and food services sector (289), the construction sector (255), and the manufacturing sector (236).
Across Europe, manufacturing reported the highest number of workplace accidents in 2022, with 535,977 incidents (18.0% of the total), followed by the human health and social work sector (469,764 or 15.8%) and construction (364,486 or 12.2%).
Regarding the severity of accidents (measured by the duration of work absence), the most common type of accident in the EU in 2022 resulted in work absence of 7 to 13 days (814,390 cases or 27.4% of all accidents). This was followed by accidents requiring 4 to 6 days of absence (558,678 cases or 18.8%), and those resulting in 1 to 3 months off work (531,936 cases or 13.3%).
In Cyprus, the most frequent type of accident among the 1,335 recorded cases in 2022 fell into the "unspecified" category (584 cases). Next were accidents resulting in 7 to 13 days of work absence (225 cases) and those requiring 1 to 3 months of absence (162 cases).
