The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has come out blazing, demanding that the owners and management of the construction company, where workers have died and been trapped under the rubble, be held liable.
Emergency services are currently on their third day of trying to retrieve construction workers in George.
Western Cape Secretary for Cosatu, Malvern De Bruyn, expressed that the trade union was shocked upon hearing about the building collapse in George.
The incident has since claimed the lives of seven people.
On the day the building collapsed, 75 workers were on site. However, authorities are still searching for 39 workers trapped beneath the debris.
“Cosatu send its heartfelt condolences to the families and the colleagues of the deceased and wishes the injured workers a speedy recovery. We pray for the safe rescue of those remaining trapped.
“We call on law enforcement agencies and other authorities to thoroughly investigate this matter to ensure that justice is served,” De Bruyn said.
The trade union also appealed to the owners of the company to look after the families of the deceased and injured construction workers.
“Cosatu is appealing to the owners of this company to look after the families of the deceased and injured construction workers.
“We will be engaging with the Department of Employment and Labour and the Compensation Fund for Occupational Injuries and Diseases to ensure that relief is provided to these workers and their families as required by law.
“The federation demands that the owners and management of the construction company must be held liable for the deaths, injuries, and loss of earnings of these workers. The employers must be held liable for any negligence and criminal conduct that has resulted in this horrific tragedy,” De Bruyn said.
He went further to call the employers greedy.
“Workers sell their labour and not their lives. They should not be treated like glorified slaves by greedy employers. We reiterate our call that workers unite in order to ensure that employers do not put profits before the health and safety of workers,” De Bruyn added.
The rescue operations continue.
robin.francke@iol.co.za
IOL