Accidents: definitions, classification, causes
1. Basic definitions
Federal Law No. 125 of June 24, 1998 calls an industrial accident an event that led to a deterioration in the health of the insured and:
— loss of working capacity (partially or completely, temporarily or permanently); — the emergence of a need to perform work in another profession or specialty (temporarily or permanently); or to death.
Work-related injuries are injuries that occur:
- when the victim performs a production task at an enterprise, organization or outside its territory; — while in the transport of the insured organization (for example, on the way to work, home).
This Law refers only to employees insured by the Fund. However, the procedure for investigating accidents at work established by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation applies to all persons working under the instructions or orders of employers, regardless of the availability of insurance.
″How to determine who is to blame for an accident?
First of all, the accident investigation commission identifies persons who violated state labor protection requirements. But the investigative authorities, and ultimately the court, determine the persons guilty of certain offenses. Watch the video answering this question:
2. How to classify accidents?
Accidents may be related or not related to production
2.1 Accidents are associated with production. These are the NS that occurred:
- when carrying out orders issued by employers during working or non-working hours; — at the time of servicing (cleaning, lubrication, other maintenance) of production equipment, compliance with the internal rules established in the organization; - during the transportation of workers by transport that belongs to the employer or is used in his interests (there is an agreement with the owner of this transport); - on a business trip, when working on a rotational basis, on a ship and under other similar circumstances; — in the course of work designed to prevent accidents, accidents, disasters at the employer’s facilities or mitigate their consequences;
2.2 Accidents are not associated with production.
This is injury or death that occurred solely due to alcohol intoxication or toxic poisoning and during illegal actions. This category includes suicides, as well as deaths that are caused by exacerbations of common diseases.
Accidents that do not belong to these categories (occurred during non-working hours when employees were not performing work in the interests of employers) are classified as domestic.
In the event of injury to an employee insured by the Fund, the National Insurance Fund is the insurance company. The first 2 days of incapacity for work under these NS are paid by the enterprise, the rest - by the Fund.
″What should an occupational safety specialist do if an employee does not report a work-related injury in a timely manner?
The employee did not report the accident in a timely manner, and after some time the organization receives a sick leave note with the indication “Occupational injury” on it. According to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, the employer is obliged to conduct an investigation of the accident. In this case, the employee must write a statement to the accident investigation commission or to the employer. The statement must indicate the nature of the injury, the date and time it was received and the fact that the employee did not report this incident in a timely manner. Based on the application, a commission is formed. According to the Labor Code, the investigation of the NS is carried out within 1 month from the date of receipt of the application.
3. Causes of accidents at work
The Labor Code of the Russian Federation identifies the main causes of accidents at work:
- falling while moving, from a height; - loss of integrity of buildings and structures, which is accompanied by falling and scattering of parts and pieces; — illegal actions of others; — influence of extreme temperatures (frostbite, burns); — asphyxia (entry into the respiratory tract of bulk materials, water, their compression); — contact with biological objects; — action of current; — influence of radiation, etc.
Preparation of investigation materials for industrial accidents
For any accident that occurred at work, 2 copies of the report on the incident must be drawn up in Russian and in the language of the subject of the federation.
This must be done if, as a result of an accident:
- it became inevitable that the victim would be transferred to another job;
- the employee lost his ability to work for at least one day;
- The accident resulted in death.
When a group accident occurs, the act must be drawn up individually, separately for each victim. In a situation where an event happened to an employee during his work at a third-party employer, the report should be drawn up in 3 copies.
Two acts are sent to the employer with whom the victim is in an employment relationship (that is, there is an employment contract between them), and the third copy with the result of the investigation remains with the employer on whose territory the accident was registered. Similarly, 3 copies of the act are drawn up in case of an accident with the insured person. The third copy must be sent to the relevant body of the insurer.
Formation of the commission
To investigate an accident, the head of the enterprise must form a commission of three or more people. Its composition must necessarily include the following persons:
- occupational safety specialist;
- employer representatives;
- representatives of a trade union or other authorized body for labor protection of workers.
The commission is headed by the employer or a person of the executive authority that controls this area of activity.
If the accident results in death or serious injury, the commission also includes:
- state labor inspector;
- representative of the territorial association of trade unions;
- representatives of the executive authority of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation;
- a representative of the insurer, if the victim was insured.
In this case, the commission is usually headed by an employee of the federal executive body who supervises compliance with labor laws.
In the event of a group accident that caused the death of five or more people, the commission should include representatives of the federal executive body monitoring compliance with labor law standards. Such a commission is headed by the chief state labor inspector.
Procedure and terms of investigation
A special commission is created at the enterprise (it includes the employer, the employee responsible for labor protection, and members of the trade union - at least three people), which must as soon as possible find out the circumstances, establish the reasons and name those responsible for what happened.
The NS investigation process is classic. It usually begins with interviewing eyewitnesses and a thorough inspection of the scene.
Members of the commission must obtain a medical report on the severity of the victim’s injuries (this is issued by the doctors of the clinic where the employee is undergoing treatment and rehabilitation). For non-serious damage, the investigation lasts no more than three days . In case of significant severity of damage - up to 15 days . If necessary, experts - criminologists and photographers - can join the process.
All costs associated with identifying the causes and circumstances of the accident are borne by the director of the enterprise. Determining the true cause of the incident is especially important - this is necessary for the further development of safety measures for other employees. In the act drawn up by the commission, the reasons are listed in order of their importance - first the main factors are indicated, then the accompanying ones.
All local and legislative regulations that were violated must be written down.
If, in the opinion of the commission, the cause of the incident was the gross negligence of the employee himself, experts during the investigation must establish:
- the quality of fulfillment of its responsibilities in the field of labor protection by the employer;
- whether the victim himself complied with the safety rules established at the enterprise;
- indicate the degree of guilt of the employee in the incident.
The reports drawn up on the basis of the results of the investigation are submitted by the expert commission to the prosecutor's office and the insurance company within three days.
All the nuances of the procedure are discussed in detail in the following video:
Employer's liability
For failure to comply with labor safety requirements that led to an accident at work, the employer may be subject to administrative and criminal liability.
Administrative liability is provided for in Article 19.4 of the Administrative Code.
Under this article, the head of the organization may be brought to justice if he obstructs the inspection or refuses to comply with the instructions of the inspection body.
If during the investigation it turns out that the employer did not comply with labor protection legislation, then he faces punishment under Article 5.27.1 of the Code of Administrative Offences.
If an employer hides the fact of an accident at work from the social insurance fund, he will be held liable under Article 15.34 of the Code of Administrative Offenses.
Expert opinion
Kurtov Mikhail Sergeevich
Practitioner lawyer with 15 years of experience. Specializes in civil and family law. Author of dozens of articles on legal topics.
Criminal liability under Article 143 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation may occur if the accident led to the death of an employee or serious injuries.
In this case, the court will determine the guilt of the workers responsible for labor protection at a specific production site. Such employees could be, for example, the head of a site or the head of a department.
Notifying relevant authorities
According to Art. 228.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation in the event of a group accident, as well as in an incident as a result of which an employee died or received a work-related injury, the employer must notify the following authorities about the incident within 24 hours:
- the prosecutor's office;
- executive body of a constituent entity of the Russian Federation or local government body;
- executive body of the insurance company;
- a territorial body that supervises this area of activity and controls the organization in which the accident occurred.
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Responsibilities of the employer to ensure the work of the investigation commission
- attracting experts to carry out calculations, various studies and tests;
- technical preparation of documents related to the inspection;
- presentation of the necessary equipment, transport, special clothing, etc. for the duration of the investigation.
What actions should workers take in the event of an accident at work?
The priority actions of the injured employee are as follows: - call someone for help; - If possible, go to the medical center yourself. organization point; — report the incident to your immediate superiors.
If the employee himself was not injured, but is an eyewitness to the accident, then he must perform the following actions:
- take measures to ensure that you are not exposed to the damaging factor that led to the incident. For example, a bare wire fell and a person received an electric shock. The witness should take a dry wooden stick and throw this wire as far as possible, and only after that take further steps;
- determine whether he can do something for the victim on his own, or whether he needs to call for help;
- free the victim from the influence of the damaging factor, for example, if a fire starts, take the person outside the smoke-filled room;
— call qualified medical workers to the scene of the incident (paramedic from the enterprise’s medical center or ambulance);
— report the incident to management: your immediate superior or any other manager;
— if possible, prevent exposure of other workers to the damaging factor. For example, if you find a bare wire, fence it off with improvised means and remain at the scene until specially trained people or rescuers arrive;
- try to maintain the situation at the scene of the accident in the same form as it was at the time of the incident. If this is not possible, then photograph or video everything. It is advisable to draw up a diagram indicating the distances of the main furnishings.
Can you tell me the algorithm for the actions of a victim in an industrial accident regarding payments and compensation?
In order for the injury to be recognized as a work-related injury, and for the employee who received it to be able to count on all the payments and benefits due, several important steps must be taken.
-Call a doctor, go to a medical center or call an ambulance to provide first aid to the victim; -The application must be completed in accordance with all the rules; -Call the head of the structural unit to the place where the accident occurred. If there is such a possibility, then you need to call the head of the enterprise himself; -The victim must have witnesses who will confirm the fact that he received the injury in this very place and during working hours.
Hello, how can I notify the victim of an industrial accident with the investigation material if the victim is in another locality and do I need to send him the entire case or can I send only the Form N-1 Report with a sheet for review?
Good afternoon After completion of the investigation, the act in form N-1 is signed by all persons who conducted the investigation, approved by the employer (his representative) and certified with a seal.
The employer (his representative), within three days after the completion of the investigation of the industrial accident, is obliged to issue one copy of the act approved by him in form N-1 to the victim (his legal representative or other authorized person).
It will be enough to send the Form N-1 Act with a sheet for review.
What are the steps to take in case of accidents, please?
Step-by-step instruction. Step 1.
First aid to the victim Before rushing to help the victim, you must make sure that there is no danger to other workers. If there is no danger, we run to the victim; if there is at least some hint, we first eliminate possible dangers for the rescuers, and only then approach the victim.
Step 2. Call an ambulance and notify government agencies. After the employee was given first aid and an ambulance was called (or they were taken to the hospital themselves if their condition allows), the employer is obliged to send notifications to the police, the prosecutor's office and other organizations within a certain time.
Step 3. Preserve the scene of the incident unchanged. The emergency site must be fenced off and no one should be allowed there. Everything should be left as is, it’s better to take photographs - these materials will be used in the investigation.
Step 4. Selecting a commission.
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The legislation obliges the employer, when an incident occurs, to immediately assemble a commission to investigate its circumstances (Article 229 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).
The composition of the commission is approved by the employer by issuing an order. The commission will include: a representative from the employer; employee responsible for labor safety; trade union representative.
The commission may include other persons, but these are mandatory. If the employer is an individual, then the commission includes: - the employer himself; — a representative of the injured employee; - independent expert in the field of labor protection.
If an emergency is being investigated in which 2 or more employees were injured, or the incident was fatal, then the commission must include: - state. labor safety inspector presiding over it; — a representative of the government at the required level; — representative of the territorial trade union body; - a proxy of the deceased (if the death of the victim was recorded) A complete list of cases in which certain government representatives at different levels should be included is indicated in Art.
229 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
Step 5. Investigation.
The investigation of accidents is regulated by the Labor Code of the Russian Federation and Decree of the Ministry of Labor and Social Development of Russia dated October 24, 2002 No. 73. The deadlines are as follows: - mild cases that became known immediately are investigated within 3 days; - severe and fatal - within 15 days with a possible extension by the chairman of the investigation commission of the investigation period for another 15 days.
- a situation about which the employer was not notified in a timely manner, or as a result of which the employee’s incapacity for work did not occur immediately, is investigated in accordance with the general procedure upon the application of the victim or his authorized representative within one month from the date of receipt of such an application.
Expert opinion
Kurtov Mikhail Sergeevich
Practitioner lawyer with 15 years of experience. Specializes in civil and family law. Author of dozens of articles on legal topics.
The employer is responsible for the health of employees involved in production, so an accident cannot be ignored. The victim requires assistance aimed at maintaining his vital functions.
In addition, employees have the right to claim payments, the amount of which is determined based on the results of the investigation of industrial accidents.
