Technological development and occupational accidents as a conditional relationship: A study of over eighty years in the Swedish mining industry

The paper analyzes the relationship between technological development and occupational accidents in the Swedish mining industry from 1911 to 1990. Technological development is divided into three technological stages: handicraft, mechanization, and automation. Some contextual factors related to industrial relations and legislation are also investigated regarding the direction and magnitude of this relationship. It was observed that two types of variables can explain variations in accident rates: (a) variables that affect the likelihood of accidents occurring, such as mechanization, reduction in working hours spent underground, and unemployment; and (b) variables that affect or are affected by the propensity to declare accidents, as determined, for instance, by Sweden's Work Insurance Act of 1955 or the Work Insurance Act of 1929. This study shows that the relationship between technological development and occupational accidents can be regarded as conditional, since changes in technology are not sufficient in themselves fully to explain variations in accident frequencies.