Introduction Occupational Accidents (OA) in Brazil are mandatory to report, but they are very underreported. In 2020, Brazil had a population of 212 million inhabitants. According to the International Labor Organization, Brazil occupies the fourth position in the world ranking of occupational accidents, behind China, India and Indonesia. There are various notification systems and an important underreporting. In 2012, according to a survey by the IBGE, 5 million suffered OA. Officially registered data for 2019 were 700,000 cases. Analyzing existing data considering notification systems can contribute to the identification of profiles and the adoption of specific measures that involve communities beyond specific ones.

Objective To analyze OA in Brazil in the period 2012 to 2020.

Methodology Descriptive study based on the analysis of data from the Health and Safety Observatory at Work, from 2012 to 2020. Data: by state, economic sectors, most frequent injuries, most frequently affected body parts, groups of causative agents, occupations, social security absences, gender.

Results In 2020 there were 400 thousand OA. 2013 was the year with the highest number of deaths 2,841. The state of SP was the most prevalent (35%) of OA , the Hospital economic sector represented 10% of all accidents, 72 thousand received social security benefits. It is estimated that 25% of OA in 2018 were underreported. The most frequent injuries (21%) being cuts, lacerations. The most affected part was the finger (24%). The most frequent user group was machinery (15%), followed by chemical agents (14%). 35 thousand victims were nursing technicians (6%). 18.8 thousand occurred in adolescents. Men were 60% and in the age group 18–24 years were 672 thousand. In women, the most frequent age group was 30–34 years.

Conclusion Analyzing periodic data and from different sources can contribute to a profile of work accidents with the implementation of public policies in Brazil.