2023-04-22 06:17:46
The law on pension reform has been enacted, but there are still many questions around work, which the government and the social partners must discuss, in particular the best consideration of hardship, and professional wear and tear in general.
Tuesday April 18, Santé Publique France published a study on occupational diseases. We discover that they are increasing and that they remain largely undervalued.
franceinfo: First, how are occupational diseases defined?
Louise Buyens : An occupational disease is recognized as such if it is the direct consequence of a worker’s exposure to a physical, chemical or biological nuisance. There are two types, those that meet criteria recognized by Social Security, and which are compensable, and then, occupational diseases, which are defined as pathologies likely to come from work, without being recognized by Security. social. 5 to 7% of employees are concerned, according to the study by Public Health France.
The most common diseases are musculoskeletal disorders, MSDs. Unsurprisingly, the most affected sectors are construction, industry and transport. Mental suffering is also concerned, depression, stress or anxiety, linked in particular to management and workload.
Are these unrecognized occupational diseases on the increase?
Occupational doctors have monitored the health of workers for 6 years, between 2012 and 2018, and they note an increase in reports. Women are more affected than men, but the distribution is not the same. Half of the men concerned suffer from musculoskeletal disorders, and a third report mental illnesses, while 60% of the women concerned are affected by psychological problems once morest 40% for MSDs.
But these figures do not reflect reality. The report points to an inefficient reporting system and very underestimated diseases, whether recognized as occupational diseases or not. For example, three-quarters of musculoskeletal disorders which correspond to the criteria recognized by Social Security, have not been declared as an occupational disease. An invisibility partly linked to the lack of information among employees, and the lack of prevention. The shortage of occupational physicians does not help matters.
Concretely, what can this study be used for?
In the midst of the debate on pension reform, and while the government and social partners will have to sit around the table to discuss working conditions, this study insists on the need to better recognize and prevent occupational diseases, and to update update the table that lists them.
Four criteria of arduousness were removed by Emmanuel Macron in 2017: the carrying of heavy loads, painful postures, mechanical vibrations, and dangerous chemical agents. And then, with assets who will have to work longer, we will have to adapt, says the study, especially since it shows that reports of occupational diseases are more important from the age of 45.
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