6 April, 2011Pakistan Metalworkers' Federation (PMF) released its new video on occupational health and safety and working condition in the Gadani shipbreaking yard, where the workers lives are exposed to danger every day.
PAKISTAN: The Pakistan Metalworkers' Federation (PMF) released its new video on occupational health and safety and working condition in the Gadani shipbreaking yard in Pakistan. Pakistan is one of the top five shipbreaking countries, but like in Bangladesh and India, the workers in the yards need to be organized for achieving workers' basic rights ant social justice.
The video shows the severe working condition in the Gadani yard where the workers face dangers daily from toxic materials with no proper protection. The employers in the yard are violating the basic law on occupational health and safety, and the unorganized workers have no way to make grievances or improve their working condition. As a result, 175 workers lost their lives between 1992 and 2010 because of major accidents at the yard itself.
The issue of occupational health and safety is one of the topics that will be taken up at the forthcoming International Conference on Shipbreaking that the IMF is holding in Mumbai, India from April 19 to 20.
PMF's video can be viewed here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb_1a95yrhY
For further information download a background document at: http://www.imfmetal.org/files/11040616464766/Ship-Breaking-Background-Documentry.pdf