Huge fall in labour inspections raises Covid risk

The number of labour inspections has collapsed across Europe over the last decade, leaving workplaces less prepared for the Covid-19 pandemic.

New ETUC research reveals that safety inspections have been cut by a fifth since 2010, falling from 2.2 million annual visits to 1.7 million.

Inspections have become rarer in at least 17 countries, including in Germany where 232,000 fewer visits were made in 2018 compared to 2010 and Portugal where checks were cut in half over the same period.

That coincided with the loss of over 1,000 labour inspectors available to visit workplaces across the EU. More than a third of European countries no longer meet the ILO’s standard of having one labour inspector per 10,000 workers.

Biggest cuts in the number of labour inspections since 2010:

Portugal: -55%
Malta: -55%
Cyprus: -38%
Romania: -37%
Croatia: -35%

EU: - 18%

Biggest cuts in the number of labour inspectors since 2010:

Romania: -45%
UK: -32%
Portugal: -21%
Ireland: -17%
Estonia: -14%

EU: -7%

The ETUC’s analysis of ILO data for 22 countries (in full below) comes on international workers memorial day, when trade unions remember those who have died at work over the past year.

Many of the over 1 million victims of Covid-19 in Europe contracted the disease at work, more than 100,000 people still die every year from work-related cancer and the number of fatal workplace accidents has increased.

The major cut in labour inspections over the last decade left workplaces less prepared for the Covid-19 pandemic and will have hit the most vulnerable workers like women, young people and migrants the hardest, while the lower number of inspectors will make a safe return to work more difficult.

The ETUC is calling for Covid-19 to be recognised as an occupational disease, for full enforcement of workplace health and safety rules through more and tougher labour inspections, and better protection and resources for the inspectors carrying them out.

ETUC Deputy General Secretary Per Hilmersson said:

“It is a scandal that the number of workplace safety checks were at their lowest in a decade when Covid-19 struck. Labour inspections have been slashed across Europe as a result of austerity and that undoubtedly left workplaces less prepared for the pandemic and may have cost many lives.

“It’s time Europe stopped treating life so cheaply and put peoples’ safety first. All countries need to dramatically increase their number of labour inspectors to facilitate a safe return to work after the pandemic, as well as dealing with the unacceptably high number of fatal accidents and work-related cancer.

“It is staggering therefor that the European Commission has chosen the week of international workers memorial day to launch a one-in, one-out deregulation policy that could impede important health and safety regulation. The Commission should know ‘red tape’ is always preferable to red bandages.”

Notes:
 

ETUC workers memorial day statement: health and safety is your right 

 

ETUC briefing on violations of occupational health & safety regulations during the Covid crisis: 

ILO data on labour inspections

ILO data on labour inspectors

Full table: 

Country Labour inspectors Labour inspections 
Austria 2010 : 309
2018 : 322
Change : + 13
2010 : 60,235
2018 : 63,084
Change : + 2,849
Belgium 2017 : 313
2019 : 312
Change : - 1 / -0.3%
2017 : 62,487
2019 : 48,825
Change : - 13,662 / -21%
Croatia 2011: 252
2019: 228
Change: - 24 / -9%
2011 : 27,456
2019 : 17,734
Change : - 9,722 / -35%
Cyprus 2010 : 22
2019 : 23
Change : +1
2010 : 6,030
2019 : 3,696
Change : -2,334 / -38%
Czechia 2010 : 333
2019 :522
Change : +189
2010 : 22,394
2019 : 29,454
Change :+  7,060
Estonia 2010 : 44
2019 : 38
Change : - 6 / -14%
2010 : 4,748
2019 : 4,650
Change : -98 / -2%
Finland 2011 : 311
2017 : 429
Change : + 118
2011 : 22,283
2017 : 25,084
Change : + 2,801
France 2013 : 2,101
2014 : 2,031
Change : -70 / -3%
2013 : 167,600
2014 : 119,462
Change : - 48,138 / -28%
Germany 2010 : 5,904
2018 : 5,783
Change : - 121 / -2%
2010 : 927,438
2018 : 694,480
Change : - 232,958 / -25%
Hungary 2010 : 380
2018 : 374
Change : -6 / -1.5%
2010 : 25,056
2018 : 30,949
Change : + 5,893
Ireland 2010 : 66
2019 : 55
Change : -11 / -17%
2010 : 7,164
2018 : 4,804
Change : - 2,360 / -32%
Latvia 2011 : 111
2019 : 97
Change : -14 / -13%
2011 : 10,378
2019 : 10,320
Change : -58 / - 0.5%
Lithuania 2010 : 199
2013 : 193
Change : -6 / -5%
2010 : 12,411
2013 : 10,069
Change : -2,342 / -18%
Malta 2010 : 4
2012 : 5
Change : +1
2010 : 1,696
2012 : 757
Change : -939 / -55%
Poland 2010 : 1,510
2019 : 1,575
Change : +65
2010 : 95,273
2019 : 73,341
Change : -21,932 / -23%
Portugal 2010 : 384
2018 : 303
Change : -81 / -21%
2010 : 84,546
2018 : 38,287
Change : -46,259 / -55%
Romania 2010 : 1,948
2019 : 1,076
Change : -872 / -45%
2010 : 192,065
2019 : 121,273
Change : -70,792 / -37%
Slovakia 2010 : 319
2018 : 320
Change : +1
2010 : 42,666
2018 : 71,635
Change : + 28,969
Slovenia 2010 : 80
2019 : 85
Change : +5
2010 : 17,965
2019 : 13,904
Change : -4,061 / -27%
Spain 2011 : 1,865
2015 : 1,786
Change : -79 / -4%
2011 : 356,535
2015 : 305,256
Change : -51,279 / -14%
Sweden 2013 : 256
2018 : 296
Change : + 40
2013 : 31,400
2018 : 27,154
Change : - 4,246 / -13%
UK 2011 : 1,450
2018 : 985
Change : -465 / - 32%
2011 : 21,603
2019 : 15,847
Change :  - 5,756 / -27%
EU 2010  (or earliest) : 18,161
2019  (or latest): 16,838
Change : -1,323 / -7%
2010 (or earliest): 2,2 million
2019 (or latest): 1.73 million
Change: -389,364 / -18%