Across the World, Construction Workers are Caught Between Coronavirus Risk and Joblessness

Pakistani migrant workers on a construction site in Dubai. Credit: S. Irfan Ahmed/IPS By Jennifer HattamISTANBUL, Apr 30 2020 (IPS) A daily commute of two-and-a-half hours each way would take a toll on anyone, but for Özkan, a construction worker in Istanbul, the hardest part of his long journey is coping with his fears about what might happen after he gets home. “The conditions on our job site are deplorable, and I feel psychologically broken with worrying that I might infect other people, especially my wife or my 8-year-old son,” Özkan says. “We don’t have any way to disinfect ourselves on the site, so as soon as I get home, I go straight to the bathroom to take a shower. I can’t kiss my son, I can only greet him from afar.” Around the world, governments are asking their citizens to stay at home to protect themselves and others against the COVID–19 pandemic, but millions of construction workers are still on the job, caught between risking their health and losing their livelihoods. Around the world, governments are asking their citizens to stay at home to protect themselves and others against the COVID–19 pandemic, but millions of construction workers are still on the job, caught between risking their health and losing their livelihoodsMore than 15,000 construction workers in Istanbul were let go from their jobs on large projects, most without receiving any compensation, during one two-week period in March as sites began halting operations or reducing their...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Global Headlines Health Labour Source Type: news