The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Wednesday called for regular inspections to be conducted at construction sites to ensure compliance with safety standards.
The call followed the death of three construction workers on Tuesday afternoon while working on a construction site at Volkswagen in Port Elizabeth.
One worker survived the fall with slight injuries and was admitted to the hospital for examination. All four workers were employees of construction company Grinaker, NUM said.
“Attention should be paid to these accidents in construction because they happen frequently. This is the second accident this year at the same site,” said NUM’s Eastern Cape chairperson, Tebatso Mokoena.
In January, two workers died at the same site, NUM said.
“The three workers who lost their lives last night were, apparently, dismantling a crane,” the union added.
“Concern has been raised that there is little attention paid to accidents in the construction industry. What has happened in the past is that one would see national figures and ministers arriving after an accident at a site, but as soon as they leave and the dust settles it is back to business as usual. Companies are not, in most cases, penalised for this loss of life,” NUM said.
“We urge the inspectors of labour to conduct inspections with union shop stewards and not just go with white management alone on such visits,” said Mokoena.
NUM said it was concerned about the trend in the construction industry, especially when considering the critical role construction had to play in the South African government’s current infrastructure development programmes and the work to be done ahead of the 2010 World Cup. — I-Net Bridge