Fatal work accidents are now on the agenda of the day; sometimes more than two or three accidents occur in less than 24 hours. In this chilling summer of femicide and gang rape, there is another big problem the government has yet to address: white deaths. The emergency started some time ago, but evidence shows that large numbers of people still die in their workplaces. The Brandizzo massacre, in which 5 workers lost their lives as a result of being hit by a train, is the last of the deadly work accidents that have been going on for a long time, we insistently repeat that “it should never happen again”, but then everything goes back to the way it was. before.
Looking back, we can identify responsibilities after mourning the victims, but that is not enough, we need to act from various angles and reconsider the issue of contracts and subcontractors. In an interview with Uil confederal secretary Ivana Veronese today.it He harshly attacked the government, arguing that “business is not going well” and that the “Labour Minister has fled”. Let’s go in order.
Many white deaths in the last few days
Not waiting for permits to ‘save time’ puts workers’ lives at risk, as well as not wearing a safety helmet or seat belt because they are ‘inappropriate’, or removing a safety device to produce more. We’ve heard a lot of stories about deaths at work this year. However, what drew attention to the white deaths again was the Brandizzo massacre, which took place on the night of August 30, in which 5 workers aged between 22 and 52 lost their lives, but people continued to die soon after.
51-year-old Giuseppe Borrelli was run over by a machine while working at the factory; Gianfranco Corso, 44, died a week after being stranded in a well to save a colleague. During the maintenance work on the cable car, the mobile crane’s basket and then the 57-year-old man got stuck between the rope and the pulley, three farmers were under the tractor (in three different cases), the worker was electrocuted from high voltage. The cables were crushed when the 25-year-old was smashed through a brick wall while regulating traffic after an accident. All in less than 10 days.
In 2022 there was a 1,090 drop in fatal occupational accidents from 1,361 the previous year, but only offset by accident victims on their way home to work “due to the significantly lower weight of deaths from Covid”. To paint a general picture, 20,000 people left their homes to go to work in 20 years and never came back.
Uil: “Labour Minister fugitive”
Uil confederal secretary for workplace safety, Ivana Veronese, explains in an interview with Uil’s confederal secretary, Ivana Veronese: “We only talk about this topic when something strikes our heart, but we never manage to start a discussion with all the people responsible.” today.it roaring: “The Minister of Labor is on the run, it cannot be said that this government considers this issue to be an urgent matter. In January and June we held two more meetings and two more special meetings on general topics. alternate school work and continue to make proposals, among other things. We don’t know how things will turn out, but we don’t get a response because we’ve done it. Three meetings were held on the heat emergency and the climate emergency, but we couldn’t. Even closing a protocol seems a little too short for me. So it can’t continue, even the 2008 decree law no. 81 It’s missing, it’s not just this government’s fault.”
In addition, reminding that there are occupational accidents that change people’s lives even though they do not result in death, the unionist underlined that there are İnayil compensation and disability pension, “but our problem is not whether we can compensate them sufficiently”. I shudder to hear that another 5 million euros has been allocated to the job victims’ fund, should we be happy about it, we expect more deaths and we put 5 million euros, will we stay with you? Is that on this side?”
Occupational safety, recommendations of unions
“There are rules about safety but why aren’t they being followed? In the Brandizzo case and in many other cases it’s a matter of contracts and subcontracts. I remember that in Brandizzo a contractor from six large companies won the job, none of which did any work, they were all subcontracted. all have to win, and security is one of the first things to be questioned,” explains Veronese. “You have to work quickly because if you are a few minutes late there are fines of thousands of euros and therefore you are working under certain conditions thinking that nothing will happen. We continue to say that the contracting authority is responsible for what happened. He can’t think of not looking at it and thinks it’s not his problem”.
Two years ago, CGIL, CISL and UIL presented a platform with specific demands on occupational health and safety; “Some requests, such as the appointment of more inspectors, were partially accepted by the Draghi government. The inspectors that the labor inspectorate now undertakes, which today highly commends the Minister of Labour, Maria Elvira Calderone, are the decisions and funds made by the Draghi government”.
As a result, the unionist says, “there are many small things that can be done to combat work accidents, but you need to sit down” because “we don’t have a conflict, the government is not on the right track”. . However, the $5 million that went into the victims’ fund at work “doesn’t solve the problem, because we can’t just get away with paying it all the time”.
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Source: Today IT
Emma Fitzgerald is an accomplished political journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in political science and international relations, she has a deep understanding of the political landscape and the forces that shape it.
