UGT and CCOO Albacete have once again protested in front of the headquarters of the Albacete Confederation of Employers (FEDA) over the recent fatal workplace accident in the province, which claimed the life of a 43-year-old worker at the Ajusa industrial estate. «Workplace safety is not guaranteed,» they said in a press release.
Both unions have called on the government and companies to «strictly» comply with the Occupational Health and Safety Law, strengthen labour inspections, and take more decisive action in response to accidents.
The General Secretary of UGT in Albacete, Francisco Javier González, stated that incidents like the recent ones in the province or the ones that occurred last Thursday in Daimiel «highlight that worker safety is not guaranteed» and that «too often we come to mourn lives lost at FEDA.»
«The government and companies must redouble their efforts and recognise that prevention is not an expense, but an investment. We will continue to protest and raise our voices whenever necessary, using all the tools available to us: safety and health committees, legal services, with the ultimate goal of preserving the lives and health of workers,» added the provincial leader of UGT, who also conveyed his condolences to the family and offered the full support of the union.
In the same vein, Carmen Juste, General Secretary of CCOO Albacete, noted that this was the fourth work-related death in the province following those in Almansa, Hellín, and Villarrobledo.
Noting that many of these accidents are avoidable, Carmen Juste called for action from labour inspectors and for the full weight of the law to be levied on «non-compliant employers.» «All of these non-compliances by companies,» she noted, «must result in significant penalties.»
Likewise, she urged workers and delegates to report any irregularities they observe in their companies, as «we are at their service to intervene with the Labour Inspectorate and the company itself, all to contribute to reducing workplace accidents.»
