Notwithstanding the high risks involved and the corresponding high fatality rate, migrant workers continue to take up 3D (dirty, dangerous, and demeaning) jobs turned down by native workers.
The death of two migrants from Odisha at a demolition site at Maradu suggests as much. This has taken the death toll of migrant workers at worksites in Ernakulam district to eight in little over a year.
In July 2021, a worker from Andhra Pradesh was crushed under a collapsed concrete slab at Kaloor. Three months later, another from West Bengal was crushed between a scaffolding and a collapsed concrete structure while working at the site of an apartment complex under construction at Panampilly Nagar.
An even bigger tragedy was when four workers from West Bengal were buried alive after a mass of land caved in on them while digging at a construction site that originally belonged to Kinfra but was leased out to NeST Hi-Tek Park in March this year. An inquiry instituted by the district administration into the accident had found the principal employer and the contractor at fault. The report also recommended a slew of measures to prevent similar accidents and ensure the safety of workers.
The latest tragedy was another proof, if any was required, that recommendations remain merely on paper.
“The death toll is of the reported cases alone, while there may be even more unreported cases. Desperation to keep their families afloat back home push migrants into accepting jobs knowing fully well about the safety and health hazards involved. With jobs in the construction sector on a low ebb, that desperation for a day’s job is even more. Employers engaging migrant workers cut corners on safety measures thus maximising their profits,” said Benoy Peter, executive director of Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development (CMID).
In the instant case, even basic safety measures like helmets were given a go by as per accounts of firefighters who were engaged in rescue operations. According to initial reports, the victims were unskilled footloose migrant workers who may not have any previous experience of demolition work.
“The inspection of worksites for ensuring safety parameters, including appointment of safety officers, is yet to restart since the pandemic and that remains a major handicap. In the instant case, we have initiated a spot verification report to be sent to the Workmen Compensation Commissioner to speed up payment of compensation to the victims’ families and to send their bodies back at the earliest. The property owner may have to bear the liability of compensation in the event he fails to prove the engagement of a contractor,” said a senior Labour officer.
