The death of a 17-year-old apprentice at Laax GR is devastating. The cable car mechatronics engineer candidate fell from 40 meters during the inspection and died. A tragic accident. Unfortunately, this is by no means an isolated case. One in three apprentices is injured during their training.
The accident risk of apprentices is almost twice that of employees who have completed their training. This is the result of assessments by Suva, Switzerland’s largest accident insurer. Forestry, roofing, work in quarries, jobs in the timber industry are especially dangerous – and on cable cars.
Mainly hand injuries
In August, approximately 50,000 young people started their apprenticeship training. And many were injured within the first few weeks. Pens most frequently injure their hands while doing their job (42 percent).
According to Suva, this often happens in classic manual activities such as cutting, planing or drilling. Most apprentices are cut, stabbed, scratched or scraped.
The second most common is injuries affecting the eyes (16 percent). It is usually metal or wood splinters that enter the eye. The third most common areas affected are the lower legs, ankles, or feet (13 percent). Mostly as a result of falls.
25,000 accidents involving apprentices per year
There are 25,000 accidents involving apprentices every year. The two of them end fatally. “Every eight apprentices have a work accident every year. This means that the risk of accidents for apprentices is almost twice as high as for workers who have completed their training,” says Reto Kellerhals. At Suva, he oversees the “Safe and healthy apprenticeship” prevention campaign, which highlights the risk of accidents among apprentices.
Kellerhals urges educators to show children the dangers in the workplace. But also to apprentices to ask if they are sure. without shame. Or just to say stop if they’re not feeling well. This is very important to prevent accidents.