Another International Day of Mourning is approaching and this is a time when we reflect on workers’ lives lost in the construction industry.

Our industry is a high risk one and too often we see ruthless employers  taking shortcuts on workers’ safety in pursuit of the almighty dollar. But we also need to remember that there are steps every worker can take every day to ensure this doesn’t happen on our sites.

The first is to join the union and support our fight for safe sites. Workers united can refuse unsafe work and demand a safe workplace.

We have lost too many workers on Australian construction sites. It’s the responsibility of everybody in the industry to put an end to these preventable tragedies.

Everyone in the construction industry knows someone who has been affected by a workplace accident, so don’t think this is something that only happens to other people. If you are reckless, or if your boss or someone on the same site cuts corners, it can happen to you too.

What you do can also hurt someone else. What they do can hurt you. And if we all don’t look after each other and stand up for safety on site, we are all at risk.

The Union is campaigning against the Bad Laws imposed on our industry and against the ABCC which make our industry less safe. Besides attending Memorials, workers are also invited to watch the CFMEU You Tube video on how deaths affect us in our industry. You can also leave a message for a seriously injured or lost mate. Go to our Bad Laws Cost Lives Campaign page for both.

Stay safe, stick together and keep up the fight for a brighter, safer future for our industry.