The Insular Union of Workers' Commissions in Lanzarote has publicly lamented the event that occurred last Friday in Guinate Tropical Park, when a worker died after being run over by a tractor. The union, which points out that so far it only knows the information published in the media about this tragedy, has also warned that "occupational safety is still a pending issue for most companies in Lanzarote".
Regarding this event, CCOO considers that it is "important to highlight that generally the information that reaches citizens is the immediate cause, that is, the last event that occurred, generally associated with an action carried out by the worker involved in the accident". In this case, it points out, "we know through the media that the worker was manipulating the tractor when it ran over him for not having the "handbrake on".
However, the union warns that "the basic causes are usually unknown, in this case: the condition of the tractor, its revisions, if it broke down frequently, how the breakdowns were managed, the specific training of the worker to carry out this task, the characteristics of the land where the tractor was parked, the workload of the staff or the type of organization in the company".
Tragic statistics
From CCOO they point out that, "unfortunately, rollovers constitute approximately half of the accidents in tractors (statistical data on accidents INSHT), motivated by various causes, such as technical reasons (state of the tractor, preventive maintenance), lack of adequate preparation, characteristics of the work area, stability of the land, the workload of the staff, the type of organization in the company or unsafe acts".
Regarding Lanzarote, they warn that on the island "there is still no integration of the preventive culture in companies" and that "middle managers resist accepting their responsibilities in supervision in preventive matters". In addition, they denounce that "occupational safety is still underestimated with respect to the quality of the product or service; occupational health is still treated as something foreign to the company (in many cases, considering it the responsibility of the External Prevention Service); there is still no commitment to the participation of workers in preventive matters; and all the information is still hoarded without transmitting it to those involved: the workers and their representatives".
To this "lack of interest in the preventive culture", according to CCOO, "is added the current economic situation, an excuse used by the company not to invest in the safety and health of workers and ignore the preventive measures proposed by the prevention services". This, "together with the need to obtain a job or the fear of losing it, generates that some workers accept working conditions that may threaten their own integrity", according to the union, which recalls that "there is no valid excuse to ignore the basic rules of occupational health", because "safeguarding the safety and health of workers is a basic right".
