Am 28.April wird jedes Jahr den an Betriebsunfällen und Berufskrankheiten verstorbenen Arbeiter*innen gedacht. Der internationale „Workers‘ Memorial Day“ ist ein Anlass, um nicht nur auf die menschenverachtenden Ausbeutungsverhältnisse des globalen Kapitalismus hinzuweisen, sondern auch auf die gesundheitsschädlichen Folgen der industriellen Produktionsweise, vor allem für die Erwerbstätigen.
National Day of Mourning for workers killed or injured on the job
On April 28, the National Day of Mourning for Workers Killed or Injured on the Job, we remember all the workers we have lost. On this day, CUPE also joins with the Canadian Labour Congress and other unions around the county to demand that all governments enforce the laws, including Westray provisions in the Criminal Code and occupational health and safety laws.
We urge CUPE members to observe a moment of silence and lower flags to half-mast on Tuesday, April 28. Show your support by prominently displaying our poster at your workplace.
Every day in Canada, workers lose their lives on the job. Their deaths are preventable and should not happen. It boggles the mind that we lose almost 1000 workers every year.
In 2017, the most recent year that full statistics are available, the officially recorded number of workplace fatalities rose to at least 951. As with every year, we say “at least” because we, in the labour movement, have always known that the number is higher.
Last year, a new report called Work-Related Death in Canada has attempted to quantify the number of workers lost who are usually uncounted. These are people who are not in the compensation system, or are self-employed, or work “off the grid” in precarious work. Or they are considered to have had a “natural” death, or were commuting to and from work, or who died from an occupational disease or cancer that was never related back to their working conditions.
If we include all the uncounted, the research suggests that there may be 10-13 times as many people dying because of work in Canada than we officially accept in our compensation system. But while there may be no insurance payment for those left behind, their loved ones are gone just the same.
We implore governments and employers to invest in prevention, including strong health and safety committees. We call for a robust enforcement regime to enhance prevention through pro-active inspections, and to punish those employers who refuse to fulfill their duty to ensure a safe workplace. We also call on the federal government to reinstate the definition of danger that existed in the Canada Labour Code before Stephen Harper weakened it without consultation in 2014.
Day of Mourning flag **New Design!**
https://cupe.ca/event/day-mourning
IWMD will give us the chance to remember the workers who have died because of COVID-19
Tuesday 28 April is International Workers’ Memorial Day, when we remember all those who have died because of their work – and renew our pledge to fight for the living.
In the year of coronavirus, this day of commemoration has never been more important. And that is why UNISON is asking the country to observe a minute’s silence, to remember all the health, care and other key workers who have already lost their lives to COVID-19.
The campaign for a minute’s silence at 11am next Tuesday was launched earlier this week by UNISON, the Royal College of Nursing and the Royal College of Midwives, which collectively represent more than a million NHS and public service workers, including porters, refuse collectors and care staff.
UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis said it would be “the ultimate tribute to remember workers who’ve lost their lives and put themselves in harm’s way to keep us safe and vital services running.
“Every year, the sacrifice of workers around the world is recognised, but this year has a special significance because of the pandemic.
“Thousands of key staff are on the frontline while the rest of us are in lockdown. That’s why we’ve issued this call for the whole country to take part and remember the sacrifices they’ve made. The best tribute we can all pay them is to stay inside to protect the NHS.”
Thousands of workers across the UK are caring for those suffering from COVID-19 or delivering vital public services that are vital for us all – potentially putting their own safety and even their own lives at risk.
In many cases, these workers know that, by simply doing their jobs, they are putting themselves at risk.
The risks faced by those working in the health and social care sectors has already been acknowledged, but there are also others – those working in childcare, police services and refuse collection, in hostels and rescue centres, in gas, water and electricity, and in transport services among them – whose work and dedication often goes unacknowledged.
Tragically, some of these workers have already died. In some cases, more could have been done to protect them, whether by better enforcement of social distancing, looking after workers with underlying health conditions or provision of adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep them safe.
While improvements have been seen in some areas, more needs to be done – specifically in relation to assessing the risks our members are facing and ensuring that all staff who require it are getting the protective equipment needed to do the job safely.
UNISON has never been afraid to demand the highest standards for workers; we have not been afraid to speak out and hold the government to account on providing the right PPE when staff need it, and to hold employers to account who are not doing enough to keep their workers safe.
All of this adds to the importance of observing a minutes’ silence at 11am next Tuesday.
But other things that you can do include:
Coronavirus: what you need to know
Spanish trade union confederation Confederacion Sindical de Comisiones Obreras CC.OO has produced 28 April graphics that have been reproduced below.
CC.OO asegura que el COVID-19 revela la debilidad de la prevención de riesgos laborales en España
For further information:
Spain
Szanowni Państwo,
Międzynarodowa Organizacja Pracy ogłosiła, że tematem obchodów Światowego Dnia Bezpieczeństwa i Ochrony Zdrowia w Pracy – 28 kwietnia 2020 r. będzie:
Stop pandemii
Bezpieczeństwo i higiena pracy chroni i ratuje życie
Jest to odpowiedź na kryzys światowy wywołany pandemią, stanowiącą wielkie wyzwanie m.in. w zakresie bezpieczeństwa i higieny pracy. Światowy Dzień Bezpieczeństwa i Ochrony Zdrowia w Pracy skoncentruje się w tym roku na problemie zwalczania chorób zakaźnych w pracy, a w szczególności pandemii COVID-19 oraz na ochronie bezpieczeństwa i zdrowia pracowników podczas wznawiania działalności przez przedsiębiorstwa, które powinno przebiegać zgodnie z zasadami zapewniającymi ograniczanie rozprzestrzeniania się zakażenia.
Międzynarodowa Organizacja Pracy podkreśla potrzebę podejmowania specjalnych środków w celu ochrony pracowników służby zdrowia i innych pracowników, którzy w walce z pandemią codziennie ryzykują własne zdrowie. MOP zwraca także uwagę na wykorzystywanie na szeroką skalę pracy zdalnej, która nie powinna zaburzać równowagi między życiem zawodowym a prywatnym, umożliwiając realizowanie innych zajęć, takich jak opieka nad dziećmi, osobami chorymi lub starszymi.
Więcej informacji o obchodach dnia na stronie www.ciop.pl/28kwietnia
W dniu 28 kwietnia w godz. 15:00-16:00 MOP organizuje webinarium, którego celem będzie stymulowanie dialogu na temat znaczenia zapewnienia bezpieczeństwa i zdrowia w pracy, nie tylko dla ochrony życia pracowników, ale także dla zapewnienia ciągłości biznesowej. Webinarium będzie prowadzone w języku angielskim. Można się na niego zarejestrować poprzez stronę https://www.ilo.org/global/topics/safety-and-health-at-work/events-training/events-meetings/world-day-safety-health-at-work/WCMS_742138/lang–en/index.htm
Jednocześnie informuję, że materiały poświęcone planowanemu wcześniej przez MOP tematowi Dnia („Przemoc i nękanie w miejscu pracy”) będą dalej przygotowywane i zostaną przekazane do upowszechnienia w późniejszym terminie.
Z pozdrowieniami,
Dorota Pięta
Centralny Instytut Ochrony Pracy – Państwowy Instytut Badawczy
Ośrodek Promocji i Wdrażania
ul. Czerniakowska 16
00-701 Warszawa
International Workers’ Memorial Day takes place annually around the world on April 28 – it is an international day of remembrance and action for workers killed, disabled, injured or made unwell by their work.
Due to the current COVID-19 restrictions, Trades and Labour Councils (TLCs) around Australia will be holding their events online this year.
You can find details of the various TLC events here.
The ACTU has also prepared some shareables that all are welcome to use.
Australian Council of Trade Unions
Level 4/365 Queen Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3000
t (03) 9664-7340 f (03) 9600-0050
e jholden@actu.org.au w actu.org.au
w australianunions.org.au
Facebook /AustralianUnions
Twitter @UnionsAustralia
Instagram @AusUnions
ETUC has today shared 28 April materials for general use prepared by their communication department.
The aim is to make a solid connection between the current Covid 19 crisis and more general health and safety issues.
ETUC has provided the materials in formats for Twitter, Facebook and Instagram (and also in editable formats so you can edit – add your logo and translate), a statement signed by ETUC and European sectoral trade union federations, and a list of short texts we will use with the visuals on social media.
ETUC will publish the statement and start posting on social media from Friday 24 April, with new posts every day until and including Tuesday 28 April.
You are encouraged to use the materials as you wish, to translate and adapt, and also to share/like ETUC posts . ETUC has full rights for photos so you can use them too. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #IWMD20, we are also using #CoronaVirus and #Covid19 .
Recognising the challenge that governments, employers, workers and whole societies are facing worldwide to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, to mark International Workers’ Memorial Day – World Day for Safety and Health at Work – the International Labour Organisation (ILO) will focus on addressing the outbreak of infectious diseases at work, focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic.
The day will focus on addressing the outbreak of infectious diseases at work, focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim is to stimulate national tripartite dialogue on safety and health at work. The ILO is using this day to raise awareness on the adoption of safe practices in workplaces and the role that occupational safety and health (OSH) services play. It will also focus on the medium to long-term, including recovery and future preparedness, in particular, integrating measures into OSH management systems and policies at the national and enterprise levels. More
OBSERVE WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY APRIL 28
OBSERVA EL DÍA CONMEMORATIVO DEL TRABAJADOR CAÍDO 28 DE ABRIL
The AFL-CIO has released two new resources to help workers, unions and others prepare for commemorating Workers Memorial Day, April 28 — on the day itself and the weeks before and following:
1) Our Workers Memorial Day toolkit now can be found at: http://aflcio.org/2020-wmd-toolkit. This includes talking points, information on WMD events and actions, the Trump administration’s record on COVID-19 and other S&H issues, COVID-19 facts, national and state level data and other S&H facts, a flyer on emergency infectious disease standards, sample OpEds, LTEs, advisories and event releases…
2) Digital graphics for sharing around Workers Memorial Day: go.aflcio.org/-2020-graphics
As a reminder, all of the WMD artwork and other materials for download can be found here: aflcio.org/workersmemorialday
And please encourage everyone to submit their WMD events and actions here: go.aflcio.org/wmd2020
Please continue to distribute these widely — to lift up worker safety protections against COVID-19 and other safety hazards this year as we mourn for the dead, fight for the living.
