Pepe Álvarez, in opposition to the employers: “They give a shit about the health of the workers” | Economy | EUROtoday

The common secretary of UGT, Pepe Álvarez, charged this Sunday in opposition to the CEOE employers’ affiliation for its place within the negotiation of the brand new occupational danger prevention regulation, guaranteeing that “they don’t care a shit” in regards to the well being and security of employees. Álvarez made these statements throughout his speech on the tribute to the founding father of the SOMA Mining Union, Manuel Llaneza, in Mieres, the place he recalled that a number of days in the past an settlement was reached within the Ministry of Labor to advertise the brand new rules, a gathering during which the employers’ affiliation was not current.

The union official recalled Álvarez that office accidents are one thing that occurs on daily basis, with deadly or severe accidents each day, and has questioned why the CEOE doesn’t need to discuss this actuality and focuses on work absenteeism. “It is not absenteeism, it is medical leave,” he identified, reproaching the employers for blaming the employees for the state of affairs. In his opinion, this place will not be solely attribute of the enterprise neighborhood, however of “the right and the extreme right” who say, in accordance with him, “exactly the same thing.”

After guaranteeing that in Spain solely 4% of occupational illnesses are acknowledged, he urged public authorities to hold out extra inspections in workplaces. Now that the controversy on the occupational danger prevention regulation is about to happen, he has requested the Congeso deputies to “vote with conscience” and that, in the event that they vote in opposition to, they’re “fully aware” that “when they get up in the morning, read a newspaper and there is a work accident, they will have something to do with that work accident.”

The variety of deaths in work accidents final 12 months was 735 in comparison with 796 deaths in 2024. This represents a discount of just about 8% in a single 12 months. Despite this, the unions contemplate that these figures “are intolerable.” The variety of accidents or deaths per 100,000 employees uncovered to danger was, in 2024 (within the absence of the publication of the 2025 knowledge) 2,547 accidents with sick go away. This identical indicator stands at 2.8 deaths per 100,000 uncovered employees, 11.6% lower than the three.2 deaths a 12 months earlier.