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A ROW HAS BLOWN UP in the United Kingdom over a new EU law which aims to deal with chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which have harmful effects on the ozone layer. Passed in 1998 the directive states that CFCs must be removed from refrigerator linings before they are recycled. As all fridges over 6 years old are likely to have the offending gas within their foam casings the law affects most of the two and a half million that are thrown out each year. Until now they have been buried or exported to developing countries but now specialist equipment is needed to extract the CFCs. Despite the usual three year period which Member States have to transpose EU legislation into their own laws the provision of the equipment has been seriously inadequate. As a result refrigerators, which can neither be treated nor passed on, have been piling up all over Britain since the directive became national law in January. The stockpile is already estimated at one million.
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Fridge mountains are building up due to lack of preparation by the UK government |
WITH BUILDING WORK PROCEEDING apace on the preparations for the 2004 Olympic Games in Greece, serious concerns have come to light about the health and safety standards prevailing in the construction work. .
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After a third death at the site of the Olympic village in June the Greek builders' union called a 24 hour strike but worse was to come as a worker fell off a crane and became the fourth victim in July. Workers' representatives had repeatedly complained of poor conditions, including a lack of drinking water, toilets and a general lack of oversight by officials. Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis became involved at this point, warning that construction firms could be expelled from the site if they did not toughen up safety measures. A government spokesman added that 85% of the construction force were unskilled foreign workers and blamed the contractors for the deaths, 'They do not carry out the measures of protection ... that is |
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why these accidents have occurred'. The Greek equivalent of the TUC, the GSEE also condemned the employers 'GSEE denounces this unacceptable situation that costs human lives, especially at a project that concerns the Olympic Games' and claimed that they were 'indifferent' to safety. Incredibly, a fifth death was recorded in early August prompting trade unions in Australia, the site of the last Olympics and linked to Greece by ties of migration, to intervene. New South Wales Labour Council's Chris Christodoulou initiated talks with the Consulate but said that the Greek Government must treat unions with the same respect they were afforded during construction of the Sydney Olympics. |
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The Olympic village under construction on the outskirts of Athens |
'Greek unions could be at the forefront of assisting their Government in constructing Olympic facilities to the highest standard, while helping them to overcome [health and safety] issues, as they did here', he said. Back in Greece opposition parties pointed to the large bonuses payed by the government to firms that finished their section of the village, thought to be one of the successes of Olympic construction, on time. However the deputy minister of Labour replied that 260 inspections had been carried out during the first half of 2002, which resulted in 40 fines and 27 cases where the work was suspended. The ministry's position on health and safety issues was not negotiable, Eleftherios Tziolas told the Greek Parliament.
The European Transport Workers Federation, representing all the national unions , have started a campaign for an EU directive which would ensure that aircraft cabin crew are licensed. They say that this would reassure the public in these troubled times for the aviation industry. The measure has been pending since 1997 but has been blocked by Germany and the UK.
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