Valencia will roll out a comprehensive action plan against serious and fatal occupational incidents, coordinated with the key economic and social stakeholders that best represent the Valencian Community. The plan emerged from an emergency meeting led by Elvira Ródenas Sancho, Director General for Occupational Health and Workplace Safety, together with representatives from Invassat, the Valencian Occupational Safety and Health Institute, and partners from the Valencia Business Confederation (CEV) along with the CCOO-PV and UGT-PV unions. This collaboration underlines a shared commitment to safer workplaces across the region. The involved bodies validated the practical usefulness of measures already undertaken by Invassat and ITSS and concluded with a concrete, multiagency plan designed to reduce the incidence of severe and fatal accidents in the Valencian Community. The final steps of this plan will be completed in the coming week, with immediate implementation to follow. Source: Invassat and the State Labor Safety Administration.
Funding for these preventive actions comes from state resources allocated to occupational risk prevention. The funds are administered by the State Foundation for the Prevention of Occupational Risks, reflecting a shift where resources formerly tied specifically to the Valencian Community are now governed by autonomous communities from this year onward. The plan benefits from just over one million euros and aims to strengthen regional safety programs through coordinated, cross-institutional action. Source: State Foundation for the Prevention of Occupational Risks and associated regional agencies.
Elvira Ródenas highlighted that official statistics for serious and fatal work hour accidents in the Valencian Community during 2022 reveal a grim trend. The results from 2021 did not improve; on the contrary, they show worsening outcomes. This sense of urgency helped drive the emergency gathering and shaped the ensuing strategy. Source: General Directorate for Occupational Health and Safety.
In 2022, there were 367 serious workplace accidents during working hours in the Valencian Community, up from 2021 with an increase of 53 cases, equivalent to a 16.9 percent rise. In fatal occupational incidents occurring on the job, 77 cases were recorded in 2022, marking an uptick of 13 cases or 20.3 percent versus the previous year. Traumatic accidents accounted for 46.8 percent of fatal incidents, non-traumatic incidents for 36.4 percent, and traffic-related incidents for the remaining 16.9 percent. Source: Labour statistics office and safety authorities.
The leadership of the General Directorate of Labour, Welfare and Occupational Safety deemed the persistent rise in these dangerous events as untenable and called the emergency meeting to scrutinize data and pursue effective remedies. The overarching aim of this social dialogue process on occupational health and safety was a thorough diagnostic review, consensus on current conditions and root causes, and the identification of action lines proven to reduce the number of unmet occupational accidents, with particular emphasis on severe and fatal cases. By aligning policymakers, employers, and unions, the plan seeks tangible improvements in workplace safety across the region. Source: Directorate staff and regional safety partners.
The emergency meeting thus functioned as a catalyst for a deeper analysis of occupational risk factors, aiming to translate findings into practical measures. The collaboration across government, employers, and labor representatives was designed to produce clear, implementable strategies that can lower the incidence of serious injuries and deaths in Valencia’s workplaces. The initiative reflects a broader commitment to a safer economy where worker wellbeing is prioritized as a central business and social objective. Source: Valencian safety authorities and economic partners.