Panama

Organization responsible for the statistics

Collection and compilation: Caja de Seguro Social (Social Insurance Fund).

Publication: Departamento Nacional de Estadísticas (National Statistics Department).

Periodicity

Compilation: Quarterly, semi-anual and annual.

Publication: Annual.

Source

Objectives and users

Major users:

Coverage

Persons:

In 1996, 654,936 workers were covered.

Economic activities:

Geographic areas:

The statistics include nationals working abroad and persons normally residing outside the country.

Establishments:

Types of occupational accidents covered

All types of occupational accidents and commuting accidents.

Statistics on occupational diseases are compiled and published separately.

Concepts and definitions

Occupational accident:

Any bodily injury or functional disturbance arising out of or in the course of work that is sustained by a worker and produced by the sudden or violent action of an external cause or resulting from an effort made by the worker. Occupational accidents shall also be understood to mean those sustained by a worker:

1. engaged in carrying out an employer's orders or in providing a service under the employer's authority, even if outside the workplace and not during working hours;
2. before, during, or after breaks, if, in keeping with his duties,the worker is present at the workplace or on the premises of the enterprise, establishment or installation;
3. as a consequence of the actions of a third party, which is understood to mean persons other than the employer, or the employer's representatives or workers;
4. as a consequence of an intentional act on the part of the employer or a fellow worker while performing work.

1. those caused intentionally by the worker;
2. those caused through gross negligence on the part of the victim, such as proven disobedience of express orders, the deliberate failure to comply with the provisions of the Rules for the Prevention of Occupational Risk, and any form of narcosis, or drunkenness, unless the employer or the employer's representatives authorized the worker to perform his duties. In such cases, the employer is considered to be indirectly responsible for the accident, and the Social Insurance Fund may apply the appropriate sanctions for negligence.

Occupational risks:

occupational risks shall be understood to mean accidents sustained by the public- or private-sector employee, provided that:

1. the employee was carrying out the employer's orders or providing a service with the employer's permission, including outside the workplace or not during working hours;
2. the accident is sustained at the workplace, before or after working hours, or at the workplace in keeping with the worker's duties;
3. these are attributable to persons unrelated to the employee's work, or to an intentional act on the part of the employer or a fellow worker while performing work;
4. the employee is travelling from his residence to the workplace or vice versa. In order for the journey to be covered, it cannot have been deviated from, interrupted or lengthened for personal reasons.

Occupational injury:

any pathological state arising as a consequence of the work process or owing to the specific conditions in which the work is performed. The term shall also be understood to include any injury, functional disturbance or complication sustained by the worker after the accident or the classification of the occupational disease, and resulting from them.

Commuting accident:

an accident occurring en route between the workplace and:

1. the worker's primary or secondary residence;
2. the place where the worker usually takes his/her meals;
3. the place where the worker usually collects his/her pay.

Loss of working time:

when a worker is incapable of performing his/her usual duties.

Fatal occupational injury:

injuries that cause the worker's death and are attributable to or result from work.

Temporary incapacity to work:

such incapacity as results from an occupational accident or disease which renders a worker temporarily incapable of performing work, and consequently, of earning wages, provided that permanent incapacity has not been declared.

Permanent incapacity to work:

1. Permanent partial incapacity: such incapacity as results from incurable disturbances or those of an unpredictable duration, which reduce the insured person's capacity for work, but do not cause permanent total incapacity.
2. Permanent total incapacity: such incapacity as results from incurable organic or functional disturbances, or those of an unpredictable duration, which prevent the insured person from carrying out any type of paid employment.

Minimum period of absence from work: none.

Maximum period for death to be considered a fatal occupational injury: none.

Types of information compiled

(a) personal characteristics of persons injured: sex, age;

(b) amount of worktime lost: not applicable;

(c) characteristics of accidents: date, time and place of the accident;

(d) characteristics of injuries: these were initially compiled, but due to the modernization plan, compilation has been temporarily suspended;

(e) characteristics of employers or workplaces: geographical location.

Measurement of worktime lost

Classifications

(a) fatal or non-fatal accidents;

(b) extent of disability:

(c) economic activity;

(d) occupation:

(e) type of injury:

(f) cause of accident:

(g) duration of absence from work:

(h) characteristics of workers:

(i) characteristics of accidents:

(j) characteristics of employers or workplaces:

Crossclassifications:

• day, period and time;
• economic activity and sex;
• sex and age;
• economic activity, province and district.

Reference period

An occupational injury is recorded in the period in which the accident ocurred, in the period in which the accident report or the compensation claim in relation to the accident was submitted to the competent authority, and in the period in which compensation payments were initiated.

Worktime lost as a result of injury is registered in the period in which the accident occurred.

Estimates

Percentage distributions by economic activity and sex.

Rates are not calculated.

Historical background of the series

The initial objective of the compilation was to collect all statistical information concerning occupational risk coverage at the Social Insurance Fund.

There have not been any changes.

Documentation

Series available:

Funeral subsidy, by enterprise economic activity.

Occupational disease subsidy, by economic activity.

Commuting accident subsidy, by economic activity.

Incapacity subsidy, by province.

Temporary incapacity subsidy, by:

• type;
• economic activity.

Bibliographic references:

Contaloría General de la República: Panamá en Cifras (annual).

idem: Boletín Histórico de la Seguridad Social (annual).

Methodological notes for the statistics are not published.

All data are not published, but they are furnished to the Ministry of Planning, the Ministry of Labour and to university students. The data are also available on diskette.

Data published by ILO:

Confidentiality:

International standards

Method of data collection

Legislation:

Reporting:

Data reported:

1. information about the injured worker;
2. information about employers or workplaces;
3. information about the occupational accident, incident or exposure to risk factors;
4. information about the occupational injury or disease.

Changes planned:

Additional information

Pursuant to Cabinet Decree No. 68 of 31 March 1970, compulsory coverage of occupational risks is centralized within the Social Insurance Fund. The employer, or the employer's representative within the enterprise management, is required to give notice to the Social Insurance Fund within a maximum period of 48 hours following any occurrence within the enterprise that may constitute an occupational risk. In the case of a commuting accident, the report must be prsented within a maximum of 24 hours. Official forms for reporting occupational injuries and diseases are available, as well as instructions and guidelines for notification. Information reported includes: the worker, the employer or the workplace, the occupational accident, the exposure to risk factors and the occupational injury or disease.