Commenting on Workers’ Memorial Day, which takes place tomorrow 28 April, ITF president Paddy Crumlin said: “This is the day we remember all those, known and unknown, friends and strangers, who have suffered injury or death in the workplace. It’s the day we remember the dead and fight for the living.
“But remembering is not enough. Workplace deaths are preventable deaths. We have a duty as trade unionists and as human beings to fight back against what amounts to a continuing slaughter. We must enshrine health and safety at work and ensure that employers treasure it too. We have to live and breathe it, and make sure everyone else does too. It must be supported, paid for and promoted until every workplace is a safe place.”
ITF general secretary Steve Cotton added: “Worldwide, transport workers labour in some of the most dangerous environments there are: on sea, on land and in the air. Often isolated, sometime facing violence and the threat of violence. Our unions are working together to minimise those risks, share knowledge and strategies, and build safe workplaces. On Workers’ Memorial Day we take a moment to remember the lost, before returning to the struggle to build a better future. “
For more information about Workers’ Memorial Day see www.28april.org
ENDS
ITF communications: getting the message out – when and where it matters
Twitter: @itfglobalunion