Developing Concentration Index of Industrial and Occupational Accidents: The Case of European Countries

BACKGROUND: From only frequency rate of industrial accidents, it is difficult to define the industry composition of accident statistics in a nation. This study aims to propose and develop a new index for measuring the degree of concentration of industrial accidents using the concept of the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index in the case of European countries. METHODS: Using the concept of the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index, the concentration index of accidents in the country is developed, and the conditions of European countries are compared using indexes of frequency rate and concentration ratio. RESULTS: The frequency rate and concentration ratio of fatal and nonfatal accidents in European countries are compared. According to the economic condition and geographical position, different patterns of accidents concentration are presented in terms of frequency rate and concentration ratio. CONCLUSION: We develop the concentration index of industrial and occupational accidents that identifies the industrial ratio of accident occurrence, and the differentiated strategy can be formulated such as approaches to reducing frequency and prioritizing target industries.