During work, sometimes unpleasant incidents occur with consequences of varying severity, as a result of which people suffer. What should the employer do to ensure that this does not happen again in the future, and that this particular incident does not threaten him with serious losses and complications in his work? What can an injured worker expect? The answers are in Chapter 36 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation, Government Decree No. 653 of August 31, 2002, and in this article.
Question: How to determine the degree of guilt of an employee in the event of an accident at work? View answer
What is considered an industrial accident?
An industrial accident occurs when, as a result of an unforeseen combination of circumstances or incorrect actions, people are injured. The accident is related to working time, place and professional duties, and one of these three factors is sufficient.
How to investigate a fatal accident at work ?
If as a result of the event:
- the worker has lost his ability to work permanently or temporarily, even for one day;
- he will now have to look for a job with different working conditions;
- something irreparable happened and someone died,
then such a case requires an investigation regulated by law and appropriate documentation.
IMPORTANT! The employer has absolute and unconditional responsibility for the life and health of employees by ensuring safe working conditions.
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How to determine the degree of guilt of the victim
If the fact of guilt of the victim, inattention, negligence, gross negligence, violation of labor protection requirements is revealed, then it is necessary to determine the degree of his guilt as a percentage.
The degree of guilt must be distributed among all those responsible for the incident, but not more than 25% for each.
A degree of guilt of more than 25 percent is considered a gross violation of the law and subsequently the employee can appeal the results of this investigation in court.
The percentage of fault will be needed in the future to calculate insurance payments by the Social Insurance Fund.
Moreover, it is important to indicate in the N-1 act the phrase “gross negligence”, this is a confirmation that the employee is really to blame for what happened.
Extension of the investigation period for a serious accident
As mentioned earlier, the period for investigating a serious industrial accident is 15 calendar days.
Often the situation develops in such a way that in order to clarify the circumstances of the investigation of a serious accident, additional examinations, analyzes and checks are required, in which case the investigation period may be extended, but not more than by 15 calendar days.
This decision must be formalized in the form of an order signed by the chairman of the investigation commission; the order must indicate until what date the period is extended and for what reason:
- The need for additional verification of the circumstances of the case.
- Obtaining medical documents.
- Conducting medical, technical or other examinations.
- Involvement of bodies of inquiry, investigation, and court.
- The scene of the incident is in a difficult to reach place.
In addition, there are situations when it is not possible to meet the renewal deadline. For example, the results of the examination are not ready, the case is being considered by the inquiry authorities, etc.
In this case, it is necessary in writing, registering all correspondence, to clarify or agree on the deadline for completing work as part of the investigation.
And based on the correspondence, prepare an order for extension. For example, the extension period is stated in the order as follows: “The investigation period is extended by 5 days from the date of receipt of the examination results.”
The correspondence is registered so that there are no complaints against you that you are delaying the completion of the investigation.
Whenever the investigation period for a serious accident is extended, inform the victim or his legal representatives.
What documents should be developed based on the results of the investigation?
At the end of the investigation of a serious accident at work, an N-1 act and a Form 4 act are completed.
The latter is required only for group, severe and fatal accidents.
The investigation report objectively sets out the causes and circumstances of the accident, identifying the persons responsible and those who violated labor laws.
If all members of the commission agree with the materials of the case, then act N-1 is printed in triplicate and signed.
What to do when the investigation is over
When the investigation is completed, it is necessary to send the signed N-1 act to the victim within three days.
Do I need to send the case materials to the victim? This point is not regulated by law.
The remaining originals with the case materials are sent to the FSS and the prosecutor's office.
Copies of acts N-1 and form 4 with case materials must be sent to the State Labor Inspectorate, the Federal Service for Labor and Employment and the trade union.
The investigation materials along with the reports are kept by the employer for 45 years.
In addition, you need to make a record of the serious accident that occurred in the occupational accident register. You can see a sample of the journal at Resolution of the Ministry of Labor of Russia dated October 24, 2002 N 73 (Form 9).
An unfortunate incident or an accident?
Before you begin to draw up the appropriate documentation, you need to find out whether the incident can be classified as an industrial accident.
Completed sample report on an industrial accident.
A specially created commission, having studied the causes, place and time of the incident, draws a conclusion about its connection with production, setting them out in the main document regarding accidents - an act of form N-1.
The following verdict options are possible:
- Accident related to work. To do this, the connection between the disaster and work activity must be clarified and documented or confirmed by witness testimony.
Relationship with working hours:- the accident occurred during working hours, including lunch breaks, preparation for work and completion of work;
when working overtime for the benefit of the company;
- during periods between shifts or shifts.
Connection to the scene:
- on the way to work and back (if enterprise transport delivers employees);
- on a business trip and on the way there and back;
- when traveling by personal transport on business (if this is noted in the contract).
Responsibilities:
- the work involves activities with sources of increased danger;
- the employee carried out the employer’s orders, even unrelated to his position;
- the victim helped eliminate the consequences of emergency situations.
How to compensate for lost earnings in the event of an accident at work?
- the employee was and acted at the enterprise outside of working hours;
any activity of the employee at work was carried out for personal purposes;
In such cases, although an investigation is carried out, the report on it is drawn up in any form.
Responsibilities of the employer to provide conditions for the work of the commission
An employer who has allowed non-compliance with non-compliance cannot avoid additional costs. They are connected with the condition of Art. 229.2 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation stating that the following types of work are carried out at the expense of the company:
- payment for the work of external experts to carry out technical calculations, tests, laboratory studies, etc.;
- ensuring photographing or preparation of video materials, plans, diagrams, sketches related to recording the circumstances of the NSP;
- provision of transport, personal protective equipment, etc., necessary during the investigation process.
The commission, whose work is fully organized by the employer, is obliged to document the results of the investigation in writing. The composition of the materials of the commission study of the circumstances of the NSP depends on the nature and circumstances of the NSP and is determined by the chairman of the commission.
What should an injured employee do?
After the immediate threat to health has receded a little into the background, the employee begins to think about the financial responsibility of his employer. If the worst happens, this question arises before the orphaned relatives. So, what should an employee do if he or she is the victim of an accident at work?
- Notify your employer as soon as possible.
- Keep all medical documents and receipts for medications and medical services.
- Wait until representatives of the commission appointed for the investigation contact him (or initiate an inspection yourself by contacting the labor protection authorities).
- Receive a copy of Act N-1 drawn up by the commission.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION! If the employee felt the consequences of the accident after some time, or his health deteriorated gradually, he must inform the employer about this as early as possible: this will affect the calculation of compensation payments.
Report on form 7-injuries
Once a year, organizations are required to submit information on workplace injuries and occupational diseases to their Rosstat department (TOGS). For these purposes, form 7-traumatism was approved (Appendix No. 2 to Rosstat Order No. 216 of June 19, 2013). For reports in 2021, you must use the form that is approved by Rosstat Order No. 493 of August 10, 2018 “On approval of statistical tools for organizing federal statistical monitoring in the field of healthcare, industrial injuries and population migration.”
It is handed over once every three years no later than January 25 by all legal entities and enterprises (except micro) of all forms of ownership, carrying out all types of economic activities, except:
- financial and insurance activities;
- public administration and military security, social security, education;
- activities of households as employers, undifferentiated activities of private households in the production of goods;
- activities of extraterritorial organizations subordinate to the territorial body of Rosstat in a constituent entity of the Russian Federation.
What payments can you expect?
Not all financial responsibility lies with the employer; many costs are compensated by the Social Insurance Fund (SIF).
REFERENCE. According to current legislation, all employees must be insured, even those who do not have Russian citizenship (Article 5 of Federal Law No. 125-FZ of July 24, 1998). If a citizen does not consider it necessary to adhere to this rule of law, he can count on compensation not as an employee, but in accordance with the civil code (Part 2 of Chapter 59 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation).
The method and amount of payments vary depending on the degree of injury.
The injury is quite mild (short-term loss of ability to work) - sick leave in the amount of the average salary is paid by the employer.
Severe injury or death : part of the costs is borne by the employer, and part by the Social Insurance Fund.
Insurers will pay:
- sick leave;
- the cost of treatment, examination, rehabilitation, prosthetics, etc.;
- if necessary, disability benefits;
- in case of death - benefits to relatives for the loss of a breadwinner.
The employer, if proven guilty in the incident, will pay:
- lost earnings due to injury;
- compensation for moral damage.
How long does it take to complete paperwork for work-related injuries?
The time the commission is given to investigate and complete paperwork regarding a work injury depends on the severity of the accident. NS with minor injuries are investigated and processed within a maximum of 3 days, with severe injuries – within 15 days. Accidents during which victims received injuries incompatible with life are also investigated within 15 days.
Cases of injury that the employer became aware of at the wrong time are investigated within 1 month from the date of the victim’s complaint. This happens when they try to hide the accident, or the consequences of the injury did not appear immediately (for example, a bone was broken, which initially did not cause pain). It does not matter why the work injury occurred: through the fault of the employee, his manager, or other persons. An investigation is carried out in any case.
Employer's procedure
Upon learning of an emergency, the employer must take a number of actions, as required by common sense and applicable laws.
- Provide first aid to victims.
- Prevent further development of the emergency situation and protect other people:
- remove personnel from the scene;
- close access to the danger zone;
- with the necessary permits and equipment, begin localizing or eliminating the consequences or call authorized services, for example, the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
- Ensure that the situation remains intact until the investigation:
- fence off the area and put up warning signs;
take photos or videos;
- draw up a diagram of the event.
- If a group of 2 people suffered from an accident, or its consequences are severe, it is necessary to inform the necessary authorities and persons (the notification procedure is determined by Article 228.1 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation):
- local representative office of GIT;
the prosecutor's office;
- local administration;
- FSS;
- trade union body.
- Investigate and document the accident.
IMPORTANT! It is better to entrust this to a full-time occupational safety specialist: he is still required to be a member of the created commission.
NOTE! If the victim’s condition gradually or sharply worsened or he died after some time, you must notify the State Tax Inspectorate, the association of trade unions and the Social Insurance Fund no later than within three days.
First aid
Based on Article 228 of the Labor Code, in the event of an accident, the employer is obliged to provide first aid to the injured employee or organize his delivery to a medical organization.
Next, measures must be taken to prevent the development of an emergency situation (if a building collapses, a fire occurs, etc.), as well as the impact of traumatic factors on other persons. These measures may include removing personnel from the hazardous area, as well as preventing access to it; calling specialized services to eliminate an emergency. It is permissible to use the assistance of workers to eliminate an emergency situation if they have special protective equipment, as well as appropriate training.
Before an accident investigation can begin, the situation must be maintained as it was at the time of the accident. For example, put up a fence. However, if maintaining the situation that has arisen may threaten the life and health of other people or lead to an accident or other adverse consequences, then everything must be recorded (draw up diagrams, take videos and photographs, etc.).
Actions in case of accidents
The employee’s actions are not strictly regulated; for the employer, everything is more complicated.
Employee
An employee of the organization must notify the employer of the occurrence of an accident. In the absence of instructions for proper notification, the employee can report the incident in free form - orally, in writing, by telephone, etc.
Employer
The employer has many more responsibilities; they are enshrined in Art. 228 Labor Code of the Russian Federation. In the event of an accident, he is obliged to:
- Provide first aid to injured employees immediately.
- If possible, prevent an accident, disaster or reoccurrence (for example, cut off power to a building if someone is electrocuted).
- Save or record in a photo the current situation at the scene of the incident.
- Notify the appropriate authorities about the incident.
- Organize an investigation at work.
