Do older workers suffer more workplace injuries? A systematic review

Aging populations are a dramatically increased worldwide trend, both in developed and developing countries. This study examines the prevalence of fatal and non-fatal work-related injuries between young (<45 years old) and older (>= 45 years old) workers. A systematic literature review aimed at...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Bravo, Gonzalo (author)
Other Authors: Viviani, Carlos (author), Lavalliere, Martin (author), Arezes, P. (author), Martinez, Marta (author), Dianat, Iman (author), Braganca, Sara (author), Castellucci, Hector (author)
Format: article
Language:eng
Published: 2022
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/1822/68767
Country:Portugal
Oai:oai:repositorium.sdum.uminho.pt:1822/68767
Description
Summary:Aging populations are a dramatically increased worldwide trend, both in developed and developing countries. This study examines the prevalence of fatal and non-fatal work-related injuries between young (<45 years old) and older (>= 45 years old) workers. A systematic literature review aimed at examining studies comparing safety outcomes, namely fatal and non-fatal injuries, between older and younger workers. Results show that 50% of the reviewed papers suggest that fatal injuries are suffered mainly by older workers, while the remaining 50% show no differences between older and younger workers. Regarding non-fatal injuries, 49% of the reviewed papers found no relationship between workers' age; 31% found increased age as a protective factor against non-fatal injuries; and 19% showed that older workers had a higher risk of non-fatal injuries than younger ones. This review suggests that older workers experience higher rates of fatal injuries, and younger workers experience higher rates of non-fatal injuries.