Question 10291 — work accidents and occupational diseases

Summary

Ms. Danielle Simonnet draws the attention of the Minister of Labor and Solidarity to the inadequacy of the analyzes carried out by health insurance in its annual reports on occupational risks and mortality at work. Since the 2017 ordinances reforming the labor code, several contradictory trends have emerged. The number of work accidents recognized in the first settlement increased from 632,000 in 2017 to 555,000 in 2023, i.e. a drop in the frequency index from 32.9 to 26.8. Although this decrease seems encouraging at first glance, it hardly appears consistent with other observed developments. Indeed, workplace mortality is experiencing a worrying increase. While between 2011 and 2018 the number of work-related deaths stabilized at around 550 per year, it now stands at 758 in 2023, or an average of two deaths per day. It's necessary go back to 1999 to find a comparable figure (730 deaths). This increase comes at a time when emergency services are now more effective, medical and protective equipment more efficient and prevention practices better supervised. Furthermore, this figure does not take into account the mortality of self-employed workers, particularly in booming platform work, who, due to their status, remain outside radars, even though the mortality of bicycle delivery workers in particular is denounced by a number of groups. At the same time, the number of employees in the private sector increased from 18.9 million in 2017 to 20.7 million in 2023. The number of days of temporary work interruption (ITT) increased from 41.4 to 51.8 million over the same period. These indicators, combined with the increase in mortality, seem to contradict the apparent decline of the declared claims. Two main hypotheses can be considered: either a worsening of the severity of accidents, or, more likely, an increasing under-reporting of workplace accidents. This second hypothesis is reinforced by several observations. On the one hand, the workforce of the labor inspectorate has decreased, from 2,220 agents in 2015 to 1,750 in 2024, while only 45 positions have been opened to the competition in 2025, compared to 188 in 2024. Fewer agents for an increasing employee population automatically leads to a drop in the number of checks, especially since the maximum sanction of 750 euros for non-declaration of a work accident remains little dissuasive. On the other hand, the elimination of the health, safety and working conditions committees (CHSCT) in 2020, replaced by the social and economic committees (CSE), led to a sharp reduction in internal investigation and prevention resources. At SNCF, for example, the number of instances increased from 600 CHSCT to 32 CSE. Despite these findings, health insurance continues to welcome the drop in the number of work accidents, without addressing the issue of mortality, the increase in ITT or the under-recording of accidents. Also, the MP asks the Minister for the analyzes produced by his ministry on the evolution of workplace mortality and the under-reporting of workplace accidents. She would also like to know whether health insurance plans, in its 2024 report expected by the end of 2025, to integrate these dimensions in order to improve the prevention of occupational risks. Finally, she asks him what his projections are regarding the workforce of the labor inspectorate, the number of positions open to competitions, as well as possible reforms envisaged, in particular on the revaluation of sanctions for non-declaration of work accidents or on a possible reestablishment of CHSCT.

Machine translation from French. The official text remains authoritative.

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