Why are workers still dying preventable deaths?
02 January 2023
When the 2013
tragedy of Rana Plaza or the horrific incident of Tazreen Fashion in
2012 still inflicts the mind of our working-class people, a news report
of an English daily on Saturday said that at least 712 workers were
killed in workplace accidents in 2022. The number of workplace deaths in
2021 was 538 while it was 433 in 2020. The reports based on a study
conducted by Safety and Rights Society said the occurrences of workplace
accidents were on the rise as preventive measures were not improved
over the years. Casualties might count more if the workers who died
outside the workplace or on the way to and from the workplace in road
accidents or due to other causes were added to death row.
According
to the report, in 2022, a total of 333 workers were killed in the
transport sector, followed by 170 people in service establishments (such
as workshops, gas, and electricity supply companies), 104 people in the
construction sector, 62 people in the agriculture sector and 43
people in factories and other productive institutions. In terms of
causes of death, 353 workers were killed in road accidents, 84 people in
different explosions, 69 people electrocuted, 57 people in lightning,
45 people by falling from a height, 38 people hit or crushed by a hard
or heavy object, 24 workers by drowning, 14 people burnt in the fire,
and 14 people exposed to chemicals or toxic gases in septic tanks.
Road
safety experts blamed the laxity in ensuring workers' safety, lack of
safety equipment and proper training were some major reasons behind the
rising number of deaths of workers this year. Besides, employers'
negligence and lack of proper inspection by the government departments
are also identified as the reasons for the increase in workplace
fatalities.
However, some deaths in the workplace were not reported
in the press and therefore remain completely outside our knowledge, but
the human cost remains to be accumulated. As our fellow beings, we have
to empathize with the deaths of these poor workers who may be unvalued
by the state or society, but while alive, those people were only the
surviving sources of their now unfortunate families. It was one of the
responsibilities of the government to ensure the safety of the workers
to create a decent work environment for sustainable development. But who
can prevent these preventable deaths only by being responsible to
fellow men living in distress?
