Occupational Health and Safety Assembly (İSİG) Report: At Least 152 Workers Lost Their Lives in April

The Occupational Health and Safety Assembly (İSİG) published its report on workplace homicides for April 2025. According to the report, at least 152 workers lost their lives in workplace accidents. The total number of workplace homicides reached 611 in the first four months of 2025.

 

📌 Sectoral Distribution of Workplace Homicides:

🔹 Construction sector: The highest number of deaths occurred in this sector due to falls from height and lack of occupational safety.

🔹 Agriculture sector: Traffic accidents and crush injuries were the most common causes of death among seasonal workers.

🔹 Transportation sector: Traffic accidents accounted for a large portion of deaths among long-distance drivers.

🔹 Metal and industry sector: Workplace accidents, crush injuries, and machine-related accidents caused deaths.

 

Situation of Child Workers and Migrant Workers

The report stated that 8 child workers lost their lives in April, and it was noted that these children were working in the agriculture, construction, mining, energy, and accommodation sectors. While emphasizing the increasing prevalence of child labor, it was announced that at least 764 children have lost their lives in workplace homicides in the last 12 years.

💡 The working conditions of migrant workers were also a notable topic in the report. In April, 7 migrant workers lost their lives, most of whom were of Afghan, Syrian, Iranian, and Turkmen origin. The majority of migrant workers were working in the agriculture, metal, and construction sectors.

 

Regional Distribution of Workplace Homicides

🔹 Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir were the cities with the highest number of workplace homicides.

🔹 A total of 54 provinces and four countries abroad had workplace homicides identified.

🔹 96% of workplace homicides occurred among non-unionized workers, while only 4% were union members.

 

Demands of the İSİG Assembly

The İSİG Assembly presented three basic recommendations to prevent workplace homicides:

 ✅ Child labor must be prohibited in all its forms, and vocational training programs should be made suitable for child development.

✅ Education should be free at all levels, and the curriculum should be restructured on scientific grounds.

✅ Living spaces should be arranged to support the safe and healthy development of children and should be cleared of criminal organizations.