The constant pursuit by the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) to gain the rightful compensation for the four workers who died on job in a Pune-based glass factory godown has once again exposed the loopholes companies use to avoid being accountable to the safety of the workers. It has also shed light on the government’s apathy in ensuring that the companies in the state implement worker friendly policies.

In a tragic accident on Sunday, four workers bled to death and one was injured in Pune’s Yewalewadi while unloading boxes of large glass panes from a container. The workers, employed by India Glass Solution, were fatally wounded when the panes fell and shattered, trapping them in the vehicle. The deceased have been identified as Amit Shivshankar Kumar (27), Vikas Sarju Prasad Gautam (23), Dharmendra Satyapal Kumar (40) and Pavan Ramchandra Kumar (44), all natives of Uttar Pradesh, who had migrated to Pune for work.

Upon investigation, police found that none of them were wearing any protective gear while carrying out such a high risk job. The Pune city police arrested the factory owner Hussein Tayyab Pithawala and four others including a contractor, truck owner and truck driver and booked them for culpable homicide not amounting to murder under the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

_{Fire officers trying to rescue the trapped workers. Photo: Fire Brigade Department}

Abhay Gite, the Deputy Labour Commissioner of Pune, said that the Labour Commissionerate had already filed cases against the company in question.

“On Monday morning, our team comprising the Assistant Labour Commissioner of the area, Labour Officer, Shop Inspector and Mathadi Inspector visited the spot of the accident for inspection. The establishment was involved in loading and unloading activity, it was a godown. After the visit, we filed cases under Labour Laws. The company was registered under the Shop Registration Act, so we booked them under that act as well. Further, since the activity that the workers were involved in at the time of the accident was that of the Mathadi form, we have also booked the company officials under the Mathadi Act,” Gite told Indie Journal.

Fair and rightful compensation

However, beyond the prosecution of those involved, CITU has also taken up the matter of gaining the rightful compensation for kin of the deceased as well as the injured, through the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) as well as the Provident Fund (PF).

“We approached the Factory Inspector Office, the ESIC as well as the Labour Commissionerate and we had to make them aware of the situation. After that, all three offices have begun investigations into the factory as well as the incident,” said Vasant Pawar, Secretary, CITU, Pune. CITU is a national trade union affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

To implement the ESIC Act, a company needs to have a record of employing a minimum of 10 employees, while for PF, it needs to have 20 employees.

“India Glass Solution says on paper that it employs only eight employees. How is that possible? A company that loads, unloads around 40 tonnes of glass each day cannot work with just eight people. We estimate that the company must be employing at least 80 workers. But there is no way to check this, because there has been a huge lax in the inspection of companies in the state since 2017,” Pawar adds.

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On compensation, Gite said that the Labour Commissionerate has corresponded with the Labour Court regarding granting of the compensation to kin of the deceased.

“The Labour Court Judge, who is also the Compensation Commissioner, is responsible for the allotment of the compensation. We have sent letters from them, explaining the details of the accident and recommending compensation to these workers. The compensation amount is determined on the basis of several factors such as the age of the worker, years of service, etc. Vaguely, each deceased worker in this accident might get a compensation amount between Rs 14-15 lakh and 20-22 lakh,” Gite added.

CITU has demanded that the ESIC also take cognisance of this issue and provide the rightful compensation to the deceased and the injured workers, irrespective of whether the company was already registered with them or not. “They can issue backdated orders and ensure that the workers get their due compensation. There has been a precedent for this. Apart from this, since the government has not ensured that the companies implement all the necessary worker-friendly acts, they must also release additional compensation for the workers,” Pawar said.

“In 2017, the then Fadnavis-led State Government put a stop to the physical inspections of companies."

CITU has demanded that the government must compensate workers on only involved in this case, but also to the families of those who were injured or lost their lives in several such factory accidents caused by the negligence of companies over the past few years.

“In 2017, the then Devendra Fadnavis-led Maharashtra Government put a stop to the physical inspections of companies by the government authorities. This gave the companies the opportunities to trample upon workers’ rights. As a result, we can clearly see the number of such accidents increasing in the past few years,” alleged Ajit Abhyankar, President, CITU.

In June 2021, 18 workers burned to death in a fire in a chemical factory in Pune’s Pirangut. In December 2023, 15 workers lost their lives after fire broke out in an illegal candle-manufacturing factory in Talawade.

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CITU has now demanded that the kin of all the deceased as well as all those injured in these accidents must be compensated by the government unconditionally. At the same time, it also demands that instead of waiting for the next such tragedy to occur, the government must bring in strict policies to ensure that the companies implement safe working practices for their workers.