Milan, July 28 (LaPresse) – A 61-year-old agricultural worker of Algerian origin died yesterday while working in a tomato greenhouse in Pachino, in the province of Syracuse. The news was announced by the CGIL trade union and the local Flai CGIL branch in Pachino, which said in a statement that “the ambulance had to come all the way from Sortino.” “The emergency ordinance issued by the President of the Sicilian Region on June 12 to address extreme heat does not specifically prohibit work inside greenhouses,” the unions said. “It only refers to direct and prolonged exposure to sunlight, overlooking the fact that inside greenhouses, the combination of sunlight and stagnant air trapped by the coverings creates suffocating heat that is even worse than outside, where temperatures can exceed 50°C.” “As CGIL and Flai CGIL, we continue to call for stronger protections for greenhouse workers, including a formal requirement to suspend work during the same hours covered by the regional ordinance,” the statement continued. “We are calling for strict inspections and justice against labor exploitation involving such exhausting schedules and working hours. Once again, we stress the urgent need to increase the number of ambulances in the area to reduce emergency response times, as our territory is already severely underserved.”
Syracuse: Farm worker dies in Pachino; heat-related illness among possible causes
Milan, July 28 (LaPresse) – A 61-year-old agricultural worker of Algerian origin died yesterday while working in a tomato greenhouse in Pachino, in the province of Syracuse. The news was announced by the CGIL trade union and the local Flai CGIL branch in Pachino, which said in a statement that “the ambulance had to come all the way from Sortino.” “The emergency ordinance issued by the President of the Sicilian Region on June 12 to address extreme heat does not specifically prohibit work inside greenhouses,” the unions said. “It only refers to direct and prolonged exposure to sunlight, overlooking the fact that inside greenhouses, the combination of sunlight and stagnant air trapped by the coverings creates suffocating heat that is even worse than outside, where temperatures can exceed 50°C.” “As CGIL and Flai CGIL, we continue to call for stronger protections for greenhouse workers, including a formal requirement to suspend work during the same hours covered by the regional ordinance,” the statement continued. “We are calling for strict inspections and justice against labor exploitation involving such exhausting schedules and working hours. Once again, we stress the urgent need to increase the number of ambulances in the area to reduce emergency response times, as our territory is already severely underserved.”
