Occupational Injury Situations, Accident Types, and Safety Culture in Thailand's Manufacturing Industry: A Literature Review

Abstract

This literature review aims to synthesize the situation of occupational injuries, the most common accident types, and safety culture in Thailand's manufacturing industry. Data were compiled from the Workers' Compensation Fund, the Department of Industrial Works, relevant laws and policies, empirical research, and six major accident case studies (1993–2024), together with a systems analysis using the Swiss Cheese Model and Root Cause Analysis and a review of contemporary literature (2021–2025) on psychosocial risks, human factors, and ESG. The findings showed that in 2023 there were 81,509 occupational injuries and 610 deaths. In 2024, fire was the most common factory accident, accounting for 75 percent, the highest level in eight years, followed by chemical leaks, machinery accidents, explosions, and slips and falls from height. All six case studies revealed a shared absence of safety culture across four levels: individual, organizational, regulatory, and socio-cultural. Recurrence did not stem from individual error alone but from latent conditions at the organizational and regulatory levels that accumulated without correction. Khawinpat et al. (2024) confirmed that safety culture in the discrete manufacturing industry comprises six core components. Although Thailand has continuously developed laws and policies, work-related deaths still exceed one per day, indicating that strengthening safety culture requires change in organizational values and behavior alongside legal and technological measures. The review further proposes policy measures that clearly specify responsible parties and tools, such as near-miss reporting systems, mandatory safety audits, and digital surveillance systems.