Manon Bokuchava
Some owners of mass enterprises conduct the production and receive profit, mostly, by violating labor rights. One of the examples of these kinds of violations are the industrial traumas resulted from the inadequate increase of working hours and inattention of administration towards the security issues.
We addressed two stationary departments in Rustavi: Georgian Steel Medical Center and Rustavi Central Hospital – requesting the information about the industrial traumas reported in their organizations in 2009 and 2010. Georgian Steel Medical Center, the owner of which is the enterprise Georgian Steel refused to issue information.
As for Rustavi Central Hospital, it issued information in three days, obviously without naming the patients so not to disclose their medical secret without permission.
According to information received from hospital, majority of incidents occurred in the enterprise Geosteel.
Among traumas received in Geosteel, most severe ones are following: On February 14th of 2010, Geosteel worker was brought to central hospital of the city who told the doctors that his burn injuries were inflicted when the steel melting boiler exploded in the enterprise. This patient was diagnosed with first and second degree burn injuries inflicted on both sided of his neck.
On February 20th of 2009, a patient was brought to the hospital from Geosteel, who was diagnosed with closed trauma of belly area and open fracture of bone of right elbow. As patient stated to doctors, he fell from height in the construction well in the enterprise.
The diagnoses of other patients brought to Geosteel hospital are following: closed trauma of chest and belly area (patient says that fell in steel construction); thermal burn injury of the surface of left thigh, approximately of 5% third degree; second and third degree burn injuries of right upper limb and hand. In all these cases, patients claim that the injuries were inflicted while working in the enterprise.
Human Rights Center tried to talk to Geosteel staff, but they refused to talk stating that they are afraid of police, more afraid of it than of the administration.
On June 10th of 2010, humanrights.ge prepared material concerning the strike of Geosteel workmen that resulted in their arrest. Unlike workmen, Tamaz Dolaberidze, the head of the Professional Union of Metallurgy and Mountain Industry agreed on the conversation. He was trying to free the workmen arrested during above mentioned strike.
Tamaz Dolaberidze: “I’m very surprised that you have information about Geosteel, personally we still do not have opportunity to do the necessary work in this enterprise. This is the place where workmen go on strike once in every six months. Every year, Geosteel changes 45% of its staff. People can’t endure more than a year there. I can’t tell you what is the problem; the negligence of administration or grave violation of labor security.
We had information that there also were sanitary problems. Workmen did not have drinking water, bathrooms or toilets. And this happens when the administration has a fashionable hotel, rest-houses and billiard pools.
127 people from Geosteel joined our professional union and 11 were fired because of it. Is this not discrimination?! In 2009, we received information from this department according to which the administration was not giving workmen a break. We went there and saw the inscription with following content: “Nobody has right to leave the factory territory on break, except for the Indian citizens.” This too is discrimination not only against Georgian workmen, but Armenian, Azerbaijani and Pakistani citizens who also work there.”
According to him, new labor law does not give professional unions opportunity to make factory collaborate with them and introduce the existing situation concerning the safety conditions.
Geosteel explains that they had problems in the factory, but now started fulfilling requests of workmen. The head of Labor Safety Department of Geosteel Zura Goalishvili agreed on the conversation with us. “Workmen work in three shifts. That’s why it amounts to 12 working hours. We should have one more shift as a rule. Workmen also had other pretensions… But now the bathrooms, changing rooms and toilets are being constructed. The drinking water is available. We had industrial traumas, but none resulted in death. We had an occasion when the workman was injured by armature in the recent period.”
I agree that workers are often replaced in our enterprise. The only reason is low salaries. How do you think, why does a professional steal-master work in our factory for 300 – 400 GEL per month?! Because he has no way out – but as soon as they find better job, they leave our enterprise,” said Zura Gozalishvili.
According to his statement, the problems of changing rooms, bathrooms and toilets have not resolved in the GeoStyle yet. So, it is logical that low salaries are not the only reason for the workers to leave the factory.
One more enterprise in Rustavi, where workers receive work-trauma, is “Energy Invest.”
Tamaz Dolaberidze said that unlike GeoStyle the situation about labor security in Energy Invest is much better. “I mean technical equipment of the workers for security and responsibility of the administration. Despite that, we had information that a worker fell off from the height in this enterprise because he did not wear security belt. Unlike, GeoStyle, the administration of the Energy Invest is not against involvement of the technical officer of the Trade Union to investigate the real reasons of the incidents in the enterprise.”
Representatives of the enterprise “Nitrogen” complained about lack of masks with us. This problem is particularly urgent for the workers from the ammonia workshop.
The information provided by the Rustavi Central Hospital about the work trauma state that most diagnosis made by the doctors are the following: close trauma of the skull and brain concussion; bruise hematoma on the right arm; right heel-bone fracture; open fracture of the left shinbones and traumatic shock.
As for “Georgian Steel”, workers apply to the enterprise medical center in case they receive work trauma or have other health problems. Consequently, the information is closed for us.
“We are not a public agency so we are not obliged to provide you with the requested information. Do not think that I was lazy to find the information for you. I have it on my table but our director refused us to share it with you,” said the deputy director of the Medical Center of the Georgian Steel Gia Mosiashvili.
In private conversations, the doctors of the Rustavi hospital explain that patients are often suggested by the factory administrations to hide real reasons of their work trauma. In exchange of it, the administration promises them to cover expenses for medical treatment and other assistance in future too. Thus, doctors advised us not to rely on the statistics about work trauma provided by the hospitals.
“It is very important problem because many workers are brought here with various trauma and scorches. They do not even wear gloves,” said medical personnel.
According to the Georgian legislation, article 35 of the Labor Code of Georgia states that (right to safe and healthy working environment) – employer shall ensure safe working environment for the employee as well as the safe working environment for his/her health and life. An employer shall also provide the employee with the complete, partial and clear information about those factors that might have negative impact on his/her health and life in the reasonable period of time.
Despite similar domestic legislation, there is no effective state institution in the country which could study working conditions in the enterprises and impose corresponding sanctions even on long-wished investors in case of violations are observed.
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