The fate of the workers<\/p>\n
Occupational accidents are commonplace here, but Monday's
\nfatal accident, which claimed the lives of eight workers at a
\nconstruction project in Sunter Agung, North Jakarta was
\nparticularly disturbing.<\/p>\n
The accident obviously proves two important things:
\nFirst, there continues to be poor protection for workers. This
\ncould be because of the employer's ignorance in addition to the
\nworkers' own unwillingness to use safety equipment or abide by
\nsafety regulations. In the Sunter Agung case, the contractor and
\nthe engineers had failed to calculate the strength of the
\nsupporting beam when the concrete pouring process was taking
\nplace.
\nSecond, the response to such accidents are far too sluggish. The
\nrescuers failed to get there in a timely fashion to administer
\nfirst aid to the workers. It is understandable that releasing the
\nworkers from the crushing steel beams was not an easy job,
\nhowever, appropriate medical treatment should have been given to
\nthe victims so they could survive.<\/p>\n
The bottom line is that we continue to lack a proper
\nappreciation for human life. And these avoidable, fatal accidents
\nprove that human life is very cheap.<\/p>\n
The Sunter Agung accident was also one more example of the
\nproblems of inequality. A high unemployment rate remains, and so
\nmany people have to take whatever job is available, no matter the
\nrisk, just to survive.<\/p>\n
And for risking their lives, construction workers usually earn
\nbetween Rp 150,000 and Rp 175,000 per week..<\/p>\n
-- Kompas, Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/the-fate-of-the-workers-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }