Occupational diseases, working ability and employment status in the working population of Croatia

The paper gives insight into the working ability and employment status of workers with recognized occupational diseases in Croatia. The analysis based on working ability data from 212 workers shows that 12 (5.5%) workers have general disability for work, 75 (35.5%) occupational disability for work, 98 (46.4%) danger of disability onset, 13 (6%) no disability and 14 (6.5%) are sent for further medical treatment. The highest frequency of occupational diseases is in the group of workers with 41-50 years of age, in the category of 20-24 exposure years. Official data imply that the incidence rate of occupational diseases in Croatia is 4 times lower than in European Union. Such a low incidence rate derives from problems in the system of healthcare and health insurance, and also from problems in the system of monitoring and registering of occupational diseases.