Back to top
National reference metadata

Denmark

Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.

For more information, please consult our metadata website section.

Close

Accidents at work (ESAW, 2008 onwards) (hsw_acc_work)

National Reference Metadata in Single Integrated Metadata Structure (SIMS)

Compiling agency: Working Environment Authority (DWEA)

Need help? Contact the Eurostat user support


Short metadata
Full metadata

Denmark submits data on accidents at work with more than 3 calendar days of expected absence from work to Eurostat. Upload is performed annually by the end of June according to the Regulation (formerly 'gentleman agreement') in the *.CSV format.

The data sets contain information about the victim, the injury, the company, the accident and the causes and circumstances of the accident. The variables included are:

Victim:

  • Occupation of the victim (ISCO)
  • Age of the victim
  • Sex of the victim
  • Employment status
  • Nationality

Injury:

  • Type of injury (see NOTE)
  • Part of body injured
  • Days lost

Company:

  • Economic activity of the employer (NACE)

Accident:

  • Date of the accident
  • Time of the accident
  • Geographical location (NUTS)

Causes and circumstances:

  • Work station (partially)
  • Working environment (partially)
  • Deviation (from 17th of June 2017 and onwards)*
  • Contact - Mode of injury
  • Material agent - contact (Not included in 2018-data and onwards)*

Other:

  • Road Trafic Accident (RTA Yes/No) - Facultative
  • Weight (correction for underreporting)

Data include both fatal and non-fatal accidents.

*) As from 17th of June 2017 a new notification system was introduced. In the old system the variable Material agent - contact was registrered. In the new system Deviation is registrered in stead.

NB: In 2020 and 2021 a lot of COVID-19 cases were reported as accidents at work. There is no specific registration of these cases in the Danish classifications available. Most cases were  registered in the parameter 'Type of injury' (INJ) as 'Acute infection' (072), 'Other poisonings and infections' (079) or unknown (00) for the reference year 2020. For the purpose of the year 2021 ESAW data delivery, the number of COVID-19 related cases has been estimated on the basis of text mining searching for text strings in the text fields of the notifications. The following text strings have been used: 'covi', 'corona', 'pcr', cowid', 'cv', 'smit', 'positiv', '19'. For these identified cases the variable INJ has been coded as '073' (Covid-19) according to the ESTAT/ESAW recommendation on how to code occupational COVID-19 cases. 

28 June 2024

For description of the variables, see point 3.1 Data description (above).

Statistical unit is the 'Number of reported accidents at work' (N).

Reportable accidents in Denmark are accidents with one day or more of absence from work (days lost), wheras Eurostat publishes only accidents with more than 3 days lost.

Denmark submits only cases with more than 3 days lost together with cases where Severity is unknown.

The Danish ESAW data refers to all employed persons, except military personel (see 3.3 Sector coverage) but including:

  • students (trainees) occupied with 'work-like' activities
  • family members when performing 'work-like' activities
  • Self-employed, if the accident happens with technical equipment (machines, tools etc.)

Danish ESAW data are available for Eurostat through eDAMIS. The data are not dissiminated elsewhere by national authorities.

The data cover all accidents on Danish territory whether on land, on the sea (on board any vessel of sea-transport or off shore installations) or in the air (on board aircrafts).

2022: for date of the accident, eg. accidents at work which have occured in 2022.

Under-reporting:

The register on accidents at work is not complete, because some accidents which should be notified according to the rules (reportable accidents) are not notified.

Over the last 10 years it has been shown that the reporting level ranges form 15 to 73 percent depending on the economic activity (trade) of the company, the age of the victim and the severity of the accident. The wide variability of the reporting levels also reflects differences in investigation methods. Overall the reporting level is estimated to be approximately 50 percent. The latest survey showed an underreporting level of 46 percent.

For this reason a corection factor (weight) for non-fatal accidents is delivered to Eurostat along with the submission of the ESAW data.

For fatal accidents the coverage is 100 percent.

Same as metadata at EU level, eg. all reported accidents at work are included.

However, the basic unit of statistical observation in Denmark are the 'Number of reported accidents at work'. Reportable accidents in Denmark are accidents with one day or more of absence from work (days lost), wheras Eurostat publishes only accidents with more than 3 days lost.

Denmark submits only cases with more than 3 days lost together with cases where Severity is unknown.

On the basis of the national source register on accidents at work (RAW) the output to ESAW data format is coded and validated according to the ESAW methodology and the 'Guidelines for ESAW data transmission'.

Some variables are imputed from other variables: 

- Workstation (from Working environment, partially)

- Working environment (recoded from RAW data om 'place of accident').

- Weight for underreporting is calculated from the mean reporting percentage derived from comparison to statistics from emergency units at hospitals.   

W = 100/(reporting percentage), ex: W = 100/54 = 1,86

For 2017 two additional weights have been introduced for variable 'Deviation' and variable 'Material agent - Contact Mode of Injury' (MA_CMI), because Deviation was implemented in the Dansih register in the middle of 2017 in stead of the Material agent.

For reference year 2018 and onwards the variable MA_CMI is no longer part of the Danish delivery of ESAW-data. The phase III variable DEV is part of the Danish ESAW-data in stead.

A notification scheme for accidents at work has been laid down in a Statutory Order (administrative data), https://at.dk/regler/bekendtgoerelser/anmeldelse-arbejdsulykker-arbejdstilsynet-799/ (in Danish), according to which the employer shall notify accidents at work for their employees, if the accident has resulted in incapacity to work for one day or more, to the WEA.

Similar notification schemes exist for accidents within the sectors of transportation in air or at sea, administrered by the Danish Transport, Construction and Housing Authority and the Danish Maritime Agency, respectively.

Information (data) from these notifications is kept in a database (RAW) from which the ESAW data to Eurostat are created in accordance with the ESAW methodology with respect to standard concepts, definitions, variables and classifications.

The purpose of the Register on Accidents at Work (RAW) is to enable the authority (WEA) to perform inspections (investigation of accidents) and constitutes the statistical background for priorities and campaigns in order to contribute to the prevention of accidents at work.

The register suffers from reporting deficits (underreporting): See section 11.2 Quality management - assessment.

The national source of the reference population is Statistics Denmarks RAS register

https://www.dst.dk/da/Statistik/dokumentation/statistikdokumentation/registerbaseret-arbejdsstyrkestatistik--ras-

Yearly.

Danish ESAW data are submitted each year by the end of June for the reference year terminated 18 month earlier (N+2).

No additional information to the metadata on EU level available. 

Danish data are in principle comparable from 1979 and onwards for accidents at work with 1 day absence or more. During such a long time span there are of course data breaks for certain variables. In 2003 an electronically notification system was introduced. Before 2003 notifications of accidents at work were made on paper forms and then coded into am database by professionel staff of the DWEA.

Major data breaks:

  • In 2007 Danish NUTS-classification was revised following the change in Denmark going from 14 counties and 273 municipalities to 5 Regions and 98 municipalities.
  • In 2018 NUTS 3 was implemented in Danish ESAW data, but it is regularly amended accoding to recent regional developments.

No additional information to the metadata on EU level available. 

Danish data are in principle comparable from 1979 and onwards for accidents at work with 1 day absence or more. During such a long time span there are of course data breaks for certain variables. In 2003 an electronically notification system was introduced. Before 2003 notifications of accidents at work were made on paper forms and then coded into am database by professionel staff of the DWEA.

Major data breaks:

  • In 2007 Danish NUTS-classification was revised following the change in Denmark going from 273 municipalities tom 98.
  • In 2008 NACE Rev. 2 was implemented in the form of "Dansk Branchekode 2007" which is a 6-digit version of NACE 2.0. For comparability of ESAW data 2008 is therefore the baseline.
  • In 2011 a Danish version of ISCO-08 was implemented.
  • In 2017 the variable 'Material agent of Contact Mode of Injury' was deleted from the Danish notification system, and the variable 'Deviation' was introduced.
  • In 2018 NUTS 3 was implemented in Danish ESAW data, but it is regularly amended accoding to recent regional developments.