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Ecolab technician for Safety and Health

Safety and Health

We are Committed to Safety Excellence

From the way we operate to the products we develop to the customers we serve, our commitment to safety is uncompromising. We strive for zero incidents, reducing risk and empowering team members so that everyone goes home safely at the end of the day, every day.

In 2020, We Continued Our Commitment to Safety Excellence:

On the Road
As a result of our expanded predictive driver safety program for sales associates in the U.S. and Canada, we reduced our total vehicle accident rate by 15% per million miles driven, a record year-to-year rate of reduction. Our severe vehicle accident rate remains lower than the benchmark at 0.08 accidents per one million miles driven.

Additional Achievements:

More than

1,650

of drivers completed their required Behind-the-Wheel training course



More than

10,500

drivers used the Virtual Risk Manager driving application to help improve driving techniques and safety practices 


Through Training

Our personal injury rate decreased 28%* and our lost-time injury rate decreased 48%*. Training plays a big role in our efforts to reduce accidents and injuries.

Programs include:

  • Behind-the-Wheel training
  • Risk-based training
  • COVID-19 prevention and protocols

Training for New Hires

Every Ecolab division provides basic safety training to newly hired sales and service personnel.

  • In 2020, 97% of new hires completed the training within their first 30 days of employment. 

*Reflects 2020 data compared to 2019 data from global sites
**Reflects 2020 data compared to 2019 data in North America


In Response to The COVID-19 Pandemic

To help reduce the risks posed by COVID-19, Ecolab established internal and external safety protocols, based on guidance from the CDC and other major public health organizations. We continued to adjust those protocols as we learned more about best practices to reduce COVID-19 transmission risk and keep our employees, customers, and partners safe.


Our COVID-19 Response


Our Safety Progress

Note that the 66% decrease in lost time injury rate is for North America

53% Decrease

in Severe Vehicle Accident Rate (since 2013)

52% Decrease

in Total Recordable Injury Rate (since 2013)

29% Decrease

in Total Vehicle Accident Rate (since 2013)

66% Decrease

in Lost-Time Injury Rate (since 2016)

See Our 2020 Sustainability Progress Report

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2020 Safety Metrics

(Number of injuries and illnesses per 100 Workers)

2019 2020 % change
North America 1.55 1.06 -23%
Greater China 0.14 0.19 36%
Europe 0.88 0.67 -24%
Latin America 0.63 0.14 -19%
Asia Pacific 0.60 0.51 -8%
India, Middle East & Africa 0.67 0.55 -52%
ECOLAB TOTAL 1.10 0.79 -28%

(Per million miles drive)

2019 2020 % change
North America 2.66 2.25 -15%
Greater China 1.17 0.64 -45%
Europe 4.34 3.38 -22%
Latin America 2.46 2.22 -10%
Asia Pacific 1.83 1.96 -8%
India, Middle East & Africa 2.39 2.09 -13%
ECOLAB TOTAL 2.81 2.37 -16%

(Number of injuries with lost days per 100 workers)


 2019 2020 % change
North America 0.65 0.34 -48%

(Number of severe vehicular accidents per million miles driven)


 2019 2020 % change
Global 0.08 0.08  0%

(Absolute number of employee fatalities in the year)


 2019 2020 % change
Ecolab Employees 1 1 0%*

(Number of occupational illness per million hours worked)


 2019 (restated) 2020 % change
North America 0.15 0.11 -89%
Greater China 0.00 0.00 0%
Europe 0.00 0.05 100%
Latin America 0.00 0.18 100%
Asia Pacific 0.14 0.14 0%
India, Middle East & Africa 00.0 0.00 0%
TOTAL 0.08 0.09 13%