Electronic Work Injury Reporting: Obligations and Procedures Explained
When an employee reports a work-related injury to the employer and provides the appropriate confirmation from the relevant healthcare authority that conducted the initial examination, the employer is obliged to complete a work injury report using the appropriate form and submit it to the competent authorities.
Work-related injuries are determined based on the work injury report submitted to the Republic Health Insurance Fund (RFZO) or its branch, in order to establish the existence of a work-related injury and enable the employee to claim benefits under mandatory health insurance in accordance with the Law on Health Insurance (ZZO). The content and method of issuing the work injury report and the occupational disease report are determined in accordance with the regulations governing occupational safety and health, as specified in Article 51, paragraphs 8 and 9, of the ZZO.
Possibility of Submitting Work Injury Reports Electronically
According to Article 65 of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health (ZBZR), the employer must submit the work injury report and the report on occupational diseases that occur in the workplace to the employee who suffered the injury or was diagnosed with an occupational disease, RFZO, and the Directorate for Safety and Health at Work (Uprava). The work injury report is submitted in writing until the establishment of the electronic register for work injuries. The content and method of issuing the report are prescribed by the competent minister for labor affairs.
The report on work injuries and occupational diseases that occur in the workplace is issued using the forms specified in the Regulation on the Content and Method of Issuing the Report on Work Injuries and Occupational Diseases (“Official Gazette of RS,” No. 72/2006, 84/2006 – corr., 4/2016, 106/2018, and 14/2019 – hereinafter: the “Regulation“). Although this Regulation is not yet aligned with the new ZBZR, it remains in effect until the adoption of the new one.
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The employer fills out the work injury report immediately, and at the latest within 24 hours from the time of becoming aware of the work-related injury or occupational disease, entering all required data into the appropriate form as prescribed by the Regulation. Once all the specified data is entered, the employer promptly, but no later than 24 hours from entering the data, submits all five copies of the report to the healthcare institution that examined the injured employee or diagnosed the occupational disease, for the inclusion of medical findings and opinions.
The physician who examined the injured employee, or the healthcare institution that diagnosed the occupational disease, enters the findings and opinion into the report within two days from its receipt and returns the completed report to the employer, without delay, but no later than the following day.
The employer, within two days from receiving the completed report, which includes all the data prescribed by the Regulation and the medical findings and opinions, submits the report to the RFZO branch where the injured or occupationally diseased employee claims rights under the regulations on health insurance. The RFZO branch certifies all five copies of the report, keeping one copy for its needs and returning the remaining copies to the employer.
The employer handles the certified report as follows:
- Keeps one copy for their records.
- Provides a copy to the employee immediately, but no later than two days from its receipt.
- Submits a copy to the Pension and Disability Insurance Fund (RFPIO).
- Submits a copy to the ministry responsible for labor – the Directorate for Safety and Health at Work.
The work injury report contains the following personal information:
the name and surname, and the unique identification number of the authorized person for data entry; the name and surname, gender, unique identification number, residence, or domicile, qualifications, data about the job and the work-related injury of the injured person, according to the established codes; the name and surname, unique identification number, address, and location of the employer for individuals, and the name and surname of the physician who first examined the injured employee.
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