Who Bears the Costs of Preventive Measures?
In industrial countries, compelling economic incentives exist for employers to control risks for injury and illness on the job, especially those that result in demonstrable near-term lost work or function. These include the high cost of medical care (especially in the United States), the burden of workers’ compensation payments, high replacement costs for the labor, risk of litigation and liability, and negative business consequences of adverse publicity. Although these factors may differ by country and sector, they are less likely in the developing world to confer on employers a strong economic imperative for prevention—labor is plentiful, its replacement cost is low, and—most important—a high portion of the real cost of injury and illness will not be borne by the employer. The statistics in Latin America are staggering: although an estimated 2 to 4 percent of the GDP of the region is lost because of occupational fatalities alone, no evidence exists of private sector investment to red
