Jakarta – Minister of Manpower and Transmigration Jacob Nuwa Wea revealed here on Monday that a total of 66,367 accidents at the workplace in 2000 had left 4,142 workers dead, 20,970 seriously injured and permanently handicapped, and 87,390 unable to work.

Quoting data from labor insurance company, PT Jamsostek, the minister said the occupational accidents had also led to the loss of 71 million productive work days or 489 million work hours, with one work day covering seven hours. The death toll means that an average of 13 workers died every day in 2000, he said as quoted by Antara.

Data from the International Labor Organization (ILO) suggested that the country lost an average of 4 percent of its gross national product (GNP) in 2000 due to the occupational accidents.

Jamsostek put the number of occupational accidents between 1995 and 1999 at 412,652, with a total material loss of Rp 340 billion and a compensation payment of Rp 329.6 billion.