Analysis of work-related accidents and ill-health in Brazil since the introduction of the accident prevention factor

BACKGROUND: Since 2004, Brazil has had a national policy for occupational health and safety. This policy means companies’ tax burden is altered according to the numbers of work-related accidents and ill-health amongst their workers. In 2010, a multiplication factor was introduced to this policy, called the Accident Prevention Factor. The idea of this new multiplication factor is to encourage individual employers to take initiatives to prevent accidents and ill health in the workplace. This study was designed to investigate the incidence of work-related accidents and ill-health in Brazil according to their causes, their severity, and the economic activity in which they occur, and to compare the data before and after the introduction of the Accident Prevention Factor. METHODS: An ecological study was conducted by analyzing the time series of work-related accidents/ill-health between 2008 and 2014 from the Brazilian social security system (Previdência Social) statistical yearbooks. Incidences were calculated per cause, economic activity, and severity of the accident/ill-health. Data from before and after the introduction of the Accident Prevention Factor were compared using the Mann-Whitney test per cause and per economic activity. Statistical analyses were made using the SPSS software, with significance set at 5%. RESULTS: A reduction in the incidence of work-related accidents/ill-health was found across all the groups of causes analyzed, except for the groups “external causes of morbidity and mortality” and “factors influencing health status and contact with health services.” Greater reductions were found for diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue and diseases of the nervous system. Reductions in work-related accidents/ill-health were found in the different economic activities and in the different severity groups. The highest reduction after the introduction of the Accident Prevention Factor was in manufacturing and production (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the incidence of accidents/ill-health was found to be on decline, except those with external causes of morbidity and mortality and those involving factors influencing health status and contact with health services. The biggest reduction was found in manufacturing and production. However, generally speaking progress still needs to be made in accident prevention and occupational health across a whole range of work environments. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-021-10706-y.