According to a new research study in Scotland, fully 36% of workplace injuries can be tied to slips, trips and falls, making these types of injuries by far the most common kind of work accident claims.

The good news is that such accidents are commonly caused by circumstances such as untidy work spaces, spillages on floors, uneven floors, obstructions, bad lighting and other things that are relatively easy to fix. Therefore, if regular workplace inspections occur, employers could potentially find these problems and effectively prevent future accidents, thus saving everyone a lot of money.

Workplace accidents caused an estimated 4.7 million sick days in Scotland alone last year, and most of them began as slips, trips and falls and not serious injuries, but resulted in employees seeking workers compensation for bad injuries that could been avoided.

Construction sites are among the workplaces most susceptible to slips, trips and falls. Part of the problem is that building sites naturally provide a number of risks and safety hazards to employees not associated with other professions.