TWENTY-FOUR people have died at work so far this year and April was a particularly black month for workplace deaths, the Health and Safety Authority said yesterday..
Its chief executive Martin O'Halloran called on all employers and employees to take extra steps to ensure that good health and safety practices are followed in their workplaces.
"There have been 24 workplace deaths so far in 2008 - that's 24 families who have lost a loved one in circumstances that are often preventable," he said.
The first quarter of the year showed signs of improvement, he added, but April was a particularly bad month with 10 workplace deaths, four of which were in construction and three in agriculture.
"The last time such a high figure was recorded in a single month was January 2007. Construction and agriculture are consistently the most dangerous areas in which to work, with 14 of the 24 deaths so far this year attributed to these sectors."
There has been progress in both sectors in the recent past, most notably between 2005 and 2006 when the construction sector showed an almost 50 per cent reduction in worker deaths, and last year when the agriculture sector experienced a decline of almost 40 per cent.
"In times of an economic slowdown there are some who may be tempted to take short cuts when it comes to health and safety.
"I strongly urge anyone considering such an approach to think again . . . where we find blatant disregard for workers' lives, we will have no hesitation in taking the appropriate action," Mr O'Halloran said.