World Health and Safety Day 07-05-08

 

Sell your labour not your health!
The lives, health and safety of workers must be top priority
The Congress of South African Trade Unions, together with trade unions around the world, will be marking World Health and Safety Day on Friday, 9 May, a day which the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has established to highlight their campaign to curb injuries and reduce fatalities in workplaces.

In South Africa the day could not come at a more appropriate time, in the wake of the three tragic accidents at mines owned by Gold Fields over just two days last week, which claimed 14 workers' lives, nine of them on May Day, when all workers should have been on holiday celebrating workers' day.

The mining industry has a shocking record but sadly it is by no means exceptional. The iron and steel, construction, agriculture, food, drink and beverage sectors are other sectors with bad records of workplace health and safety accidents. These sectors contribute to 47 percent of reported workplace injuries and fatalities received by the Department of Labour's inspectorate.

Globally, the ILO estimates that approximately 2.2 million workers lose their lives annually due to occupational injuries and illness, with accidents causing at least 350,000 deaths a year at work places, and hazardous substances killing about 440,000 workers annually. Over 270 million workers are injured and 160 million a year become ill as a result of work injuries.

The death toll at work, says the ILO, much of it attributable to unsafe working practices, is the equivalent of 6,000 workers dying each day, three persons every minute,

If such casualties were occurring in wars there would be a deafening outcry. But, as ILO Director General Juan Somavia, says in his message on the World Day for Safety and Health at Work, public awareness of occupational safety and health (OSH) tends to be low and does not get the priority it merits, despite the fact that occupational accidents and diseases cause great human sufferings and loss, and that the economic cost is also very high. Four percent of global GDP, more than US$1,300,000 million, is lost each year to occupational accidents and diseases.

Urgent action is needed to put an end to this carnage. COSATU supports the call for every workplace to elect and safety committees to analyse, monitor and voice their concerns about safety conditions at work with their employers. We demand:

· Full compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act

· A safe and healthy working environment;

· Training about health and safety within every workplace;

· Information told about the hazards at work;

· Medical check-ups during working hours;

· Protective clothing;

· Clean hygienic toilet, lockers and change-rooms.

The Department of Labour and COSATU will be celebrating World Health and Safety Day in Port Elizabeth. Details are as follows:

Time: 09 am

Date: May 09, 2008

Venue: Sahara Oval Cricket Stadium, St Georges Park, Port Elizabeth

Patrick Craven (National Spokesperson)

Congress of South African Trade Unions

1-5 Leyds Cnr Biccard Streets

Braamfontein, 2017

P.O. Box 1019

Johannesburg, 2000

SOUTH AFRICA

Tel: +27 11 339-4911/24

Fax: +27 11 339-5080/6940/ 086 603 9667

Cell: 0828217456

E-Mail: patrick@cosatu.org.za