Accidents at work are more serious in the hours of the meal.
the study has been published in the magazine “Accident Analysis and Prevention”.
Spain, July of 2011. Researchers from the University of Burgos have been defined for the first time the existence in Spain of the “lunch effect”, which leads to a more serious and mortality in occupational accidents among the 13 and 17: 00. Only in the meal hours they produce 18.2 per cent of total accidents and 29.4 per cent of the mortals.
Severity and mortality of accidents are higher in the hours around lunch regardless of who, how, when, where and with what produces the accident ”, tells SINC Miguel a. Camino López, lead author of the study and researcher at the Group of engineering and responsible management of the University of Burgos, which this work has focused on the sector of the construction.
In other words, that this phenomenon occurs in workers more young people and elderly, with more and less length in micro-enterprises and large companies, in accidents with scaffolding and machines, falls at different levels and in the crashes. It also occurs regardless of the station of the year and in the autonomous community where the accident happens.
The research group, which reviewed accidents suffered by workers of the construction in Spain during the years 1990-2002, found that the greatest number of accidents occurred on 9-12: 59 pm: 57.3 per cent of the total and 38% of fatal accidents. However, in the hours around food, from 13 to 16,59 hours, occurred only 18.2 per cent of accidents but 29.4% of all deaths.
That is to say, although there are fewer accidents than during the morning hours of food, the proportion of accidents that lead to the death of the worker is more than double (0.24% to 0.1%, respectively).
These data can be used by companies to get to know the hours of the day in which the severity and mortality of accidents are particularly high ”, emphasizes path. workers must be informed of these risks and the labour administration should make greater efforts to promote preventive measures such as the day continued in the construction sector ”.
the risks of the lunch effect
the ‘ effect lunch ’ (lunch) was first observed by Pete Kines, researcher at the National Institute of occupational health of Denmark, which it found that the greatest number of different level falls suffered by workers of the construction in Sweden and Denmark occurred before 1 pm, but that the higher rate of fatal falls recorded in the afternoon.
why are there so many accidents?
The authors also examined other possible causes such as the lack of NAP or the consumption of alcohol in the hours of lunch through surveys 724 workers of Burgos.
Interestingly, employees of the construction were the only ones who thought that the greatest number of accidents occurs in the first hour of the evening.
He also wondered about the reasons for this increased accident and accidents in the construction sector. For workers, the main cause lies in the haste with which the works are made followed a great distance by insecure workers acts, lack of training and the fatigue.
It further stresses the importance that workers allocated to the consumption of alcohol and drugs, especially in the construction sector, where there is a higher percentage of risk drinkers. Also observed increased consumption of alcohol in workers who eat outside the home of Monday through Friday.
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Bibliographic references:
Miguel a. Camino Lópeza, Ignacio Fontanedab, Oscar j. González Alcántarab, Dale o. Ritzel. The special severity of occupational accidents in the afternoon: The lunch effect ” ”. Accident Analysis and Prevention 43 (2011) 1104 – 1116.
