At least 200 workers died of work related reasons in June: Report

In its June report, the council said that at least 912 people have been killed since the beginning of 2016 in Turkey in accidents occurring at workplaces.

Of the 200 people killed in June alone, 22 were refugees while others were said to not have work permits, the report said. 

“Jean sanding has been banned but deaths are continuing. A 32-year-old worker, Mutlu Aydar, was sick for years. He was the 66th worker to die from jean sanding,” said the report, highlighting that at least two workers died of silicosis, a respiratory disease that is caused by chemical industrial materials used in the textile sector. 

The reports showed that 115 workers in January, 142 in February, 160 in March, 171 in April and 123 in May were killed in various accidents and by various diseases caused by their workplaces. 

The number of deaths has been steadily rising each June, the report said, noting that 104 died in 2013, 155 in 2015 and 200 in 2016, representing a 29 percent increase year on year. 

The data showed that among those who were killed in June, 172 were workers or civil servants, 22 were farmers and small field owners, while 28 worked independently.

Most of the deaths were recorded in the agriculture and forestry sectors, followed by the transportation and construction sectors.  

According to the report, 13 of the workers were women, six were children and 44 were adults. 

The most common reason for death among workers in June was traffic accidents at 22 percent. This was followed by collapses at 21 percent and falls at 10 percent. 

As far cities where the most deaths occurred, Istanbul topped the list with 44 people losing their lives. The eastern province of Elazığ followed Istanbul with 12 workers. 

Nine agriculture workers, including four Syrians, were killed while another was heavily injured on June 20 after a train hit a passenger minibus in Elazığ.

The train, which was heading from the Tatvan district of the eastern province of Bitlis to Ankara, crashed into the minibus on a level crossing in the town of Yurtbaşı in Elazığ. The shuttle was carrying agricultural workers to a greenhouse, according to reports.