Recently, two more workers lost their lives at their place of work. The usual post-fatality rituals are then triggered.
The media reports on the profiles of the victims and their families. A magisterial inquiry is set up. Employers argue that their health and safety systems are up to scratch.
But soon the details of these tragedies become invisible as other issues capture public attention.
As with many other critical issues that affect the wellbeing of society, the focus on why lives are tragically lost at the workplace needs to remain intense until the causes are discovered and the remedies defined.
So, why do so many workers die tragically at their place of work?
We need to start debunking some myths relating to health and safety issues in the workplace. The first myth is brought about by focusing too often on statistics about accidents. We equate the fall in frequency of accidents with success in avoiding fatalities.
Even for companies with a stellar safety history when it comes to serious incidents, it can be risky to take comfort in rates.
Employers should not delude themselves that they do not have serious injury potential just because their accident rates are down.
Preventing workplace fatalities is the primary objective of any safety management system. Too often, these systems break down.
Workplace culture, organisation systems and leadership affect the risk of fatalities.
Employers often fail in their leadership roles, safety managers approach fatality prevention from the wrong angle, and employees too often develop feelings of invincibility.
Then accidents occur, and workers die. Managers must change the way they look at accident prevention. They must change the philosophy that says that we have in place sound accident-prevention systems.
It is a myth to argue that worker carelessness is the main contributor to fatal incidents. The truth is that often, it is health and safety systems which are the problem, not the worker. Business leaders do not always realise the impact they have on safety culture.
Economic pressures are affecting most organisations. When companies downsize, safety inevitably takes a hit. As businesses are expected to improve productivity, they often create an atmosphere rife with the possibility of severe injuries or fatalities.
Best practice to prevent fatalities is well established. Those business leaders that are genuinely committed to a safe workplace culture only need to study what true safety professionals do.
The starting point to embed a robust health and safety commitment in the culture of a business is through the absolute ownership of this function by the top people of the organisation.
Health and safety professionals must also have the strength of character to warn managers when risks are being mismanaged. They need to evaluate near-misses and not just thank their lucky stars that another potentially fatal accident has been narrowly avoided.
Trade unions should insist that their members and their employers engage in a strict safety culture. This involves, for instance, giving more importance to pre-job risk assessments, especially when non-routine tasks are to be performed.
Education will remain the most effective tool to prevent fatalities at workplaces.
Universities and vocational colleges must include health and safety training in engineering and other courses for professionals who will eventually need to manage risk in the exercise of their profession.
A fatality only takes one moment. Once that moment passes, the lives of many people will never be the same again.