A Hong Kong labour group has called workers to use step platforms after a worker died following a fall from a wooden ladder.
A wooden ladder is placed on the pavement on the Jardine’s Lookout. File photo: Foang ZHCHU Minsam/ Wiki Commons.
The 58-year-old male worker fell from a wooden ladder while installing an air-conditioner at a house on Jardine’s Lookout, the Labour Department said on Monday night. He was sent to hospital and later certified dead.
Suspension notices have been issued to the contractors involved, and the authorities are currently investigating his death.
Fay Siu, the chief executive of the Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims, said on RTHK on Tuesday morning that while the authorities had been promoting the use of step platforms for any work above ground, in reality, step platforms are only used in large-scale construction sites.
Fay Siu. Photo: Candice Chau/HKFP.
Siu said that wooden ladders are still frequently used in small-scale industrial projects, increasing the risk of fatal industrial accidents.
She urged authorities to consider issuing a ban on wooden ladders in construction projects.
“Using ladders for work-above-ground is unsafe, ” the department said in the statement published on Monday.
“Contractors shall provide and ensure that workers use appropriate working platforms or other safe means of support, including step platforms or hop-up platforms in conformity with international or national standards, instead of ladders.”
The Labour Department recommends the use of a step platform or a hop-up platform. Photo: Labour Department.
‘Breadwinner for family’
The deceased worker was a partner of an air-conditioner installation company, the Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims said, adding that it has reached out to his family to provide assistance.
According to the NGO, the worker lived in public housing with his wife and a daughter, who is a third-year university student.
“The male worker was very hard working,” the NGO said. “He was the breadwinner for the family.
“The wife is now feeling helpless, worrying there might not be enough money for daily expenses and the daughter’s tuition fees.”
