Spain employment: almost two out of every three workplace accidents happen in the first four hours of the shift

Employment

The accident rate decreased in 2025, with 94.5% of workers ending the year without injuries

Wendy Dávila

Madrid

"Workplace accidents are the main problem in Spain," Minister of Labour Yolanda Díaz said in April when approving a reform of the law on prevention of occupational risks.

The reform is now pending several procedures before approval. Meanwhile, mutual insurance company Asepeyo presented its national observatory of workplace accidents on Monday, revealing a general decrease in accidents in 2025, but a high risk at the start of the workday. Almost two out of three workplace accidents (65%) happen during the first four hours of the shift.

In 2025, the total number of work accidents resulting in sick leave decreased by 1.26%, to 620,386 cases, despite the fact that the number of workers protected by Social Security increased by 2.26%, reaching 21.6 million.

The vast majority of workers, specifically 94.5%, did not have any accidents. However, just 9% of the remaining employees accounted for 17.4% of the total.

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Furthermore, one in four (25%) work accidents resulting in temporary disability leave occurred during commutes.

The cost of sick leave for Asepeyo and employers reached 395.34 million euros, representing a 5.24% increase compared to 2024. Asepeyo covered 55.1% and employers the remaining 44.9%.

Workers with fewer than three years of seniority in the company accounted for 70% of workplace accidents. Monday was the day with the highest number of absences, accounting for 20% of the total.

By age group, those between 31 and 50 years old accounted for more than 50% of the accidents. By sector, industry and construction had the highest number of accidents resulting in lost work time.

Almost all accidents (99.24%) were minor. The fatal accident rate stood at 3.90 per 100,000 workers in 2025.

The most frequent injuries involved the hands (22%), followed by foot injuries (15.7%) and contusions (14.8%). Heart conditions resulted in the longest sick leave duration, averaging 247 days, followed by carpal tunnel syndrome, at 205 days.