WFTU Statement on the occasion of the World Day for Health and Safety at Work

The WFTU, the militant voice of more than 105 million workers in 132 countries across the world, on the occasion of World Day for Safety and Health at Work, the 28th April 2021, expresses its class solidarity with all workers of the world, their communities, families and individuals who, one way or another, suffered the impact of negligence of health and safety measures at the workplace.

Every day 6.300 people lose their life due to occupational 'accidents', full majority of which are employers' crimes, while more than 2.3 million deaths of workers occur from work-related diseases. 317 million 'accidents' take place in the workplaces annually.

Since the beginning of the Pandemic the workers are also faced with the threat of the COVID-19 virus which spreads quickly inside crowded offices, factories, warehouses, mines, cruises and other workplaces, or public transport that workers use to go to their work.

For the WFTU, the annual recurrences of occupational injuries, deaths and contraction of work-related diseases by the working people can no longer be understood as workplace accidents. These incidents evidenced the inherent conduct and regard of the working people's lives by the capitalist mode of production and the uncontrollable industrial production on the working people of the world and the environment, and need a different attitude from a class oriented trade union movement.

Since its establishment in 1945, the WFTU has relentlessly conducted militant struggles in the workplace and beyond, for the protection of the lives of working people, and remains the militant international voice for workers and the working class and steadfast against imperialist governments, capitalist employers and collaborationist unions, who consciously sacrifice the health of the working people at the workplace for the unscrupulous pursue of profits. WFTU will always be on the side of workers and the people of the world against the injustices of imperialism and capitalist employers.

For the class-oriented international trade union movement and its members, the 'world day for safety and health at work', should not be the occasion to accolade imperialists and capitalists monopolies public lip service on the protection of workers' lives to ease their conscience.

For the WFTU is a day of action to protect and establish health and safety measures in the work places. We salute the initiative of UITBB to start the international Campaign Qatar 2022: DON'T BUILD STADIUMS ON WORKERS' BLOOD. TAKE ACTION NOW! We call all our affiliates to take and plan relevant actions.

The Secretariat