Inspections led to safer workplaces, watchdog reports

Workplace accidents and deaths in China dropped in the first half of this year as the government stepped up inspections, the top safety watchdog said on Thursday.

The number of workplace accidents from January to June plunged by 25.4 percent year-on-year to 2,240, while the death toll in those accidents dropped by 17.4 percent to 1,620, Su Jie, a State Administration of Work Safety official, said at a news conference.

"The work safety situation improved in most provincial regions. Both the number of accidents and the death toll declined in 22 of the 32 provincial regions monitored, and no major accident happened in 21 of them," Su said.