Over 900 occupational fatalities reported in Turkey in first 6 months of 2017
Turkey’s İSİG (Council of Labor Health and Safety) released its latest report on occupational fatalities for the month of June in 2017. As at least 164 people were recorded to have lost their lives at their workplaces in job related hazards, the total number of occupational fatalities for the first 6 months of 2017 has reached at least 906.
Workers who lost their lives at work in June were laborers in sectors of farming (49); construction (36); transportation (21); commerce (11); energy (9), and, others.
42 died in traffic accidents; 27 were stranded; 26 fell down from a high point; and 20 got electrocuted.
9 of the workers who lost their lives in June were children; and, 3 of them were 14 and under.
While most occupational fatalities took place in İstanbul (13), it was followed with İzmir (11), Manisa (9), and Kocaeli (8).
In the report, İSİG also drew attention to the recent record high heat felt across the country and stated that necessary precautions should have been taken by the authorities.
As the weather temperature had reached over 40 Celsius in several cities, at least 15 workers – 7 of them from construction sector – lost their lives just over the weekend when the dangerous heat way hit the country.
Despite the government’s assertions of ‘zero occupational fatality’ policy, there have not been improvements and regulations sufficient enough to address and solve the problem.
Source: https://www.birgun.net/haber-detay/bu-yilin-ilk-6-ayinda-en-az-906-is-cinayeti-168259.html