Workers Comp Accident Rates Do Spring Forward
Do Workers Comp Accident Rates twice per year? According to a recent article I came across- not necessarily.
The one hour time change in the fall has no effect on accident rates. The springtime “ides of March” time change does lead to a higher rate of accidents.
Two doctoral candidates found that a spike in injuries does occur every March.
In two separate studies, they found that the March switch to Daylight Savings Time resulted in
- 40 minutes less sleep for American workers
- 5.7 percent increase in workplace injuries
- nearly 68 percent more work days lost to injuries.
In Canada, the accidents rate increases do agree with these two studies. There was an 8% increase in accidents the Monday following the time change.
Traffic accidents do rise sharply on the Monday after the March Daylight Savings time change. In fact, a long term study showed a 17% increase in traffic accidents on that Monday.
Finding any rating bureau information that is specific to a certain date each year was difficult at best.
A 2009 Journal of Applied Psychology study concluded that miners had a 40 minute sleep deprivation which resulted in a 5.7 increase in accident rates for the Monday after the March time change. The Workers Comp accident rate for this one industry may not be reflective of all industries.
Related: Combined Ratio Difference Debate – Calendar vs. Accident Year
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