Another Top Glove Factory Worker Dies Third In Three Months

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A Nepali worker from one of rubber glove manufacturer Top Glove’s factories in Klang died, allegedly while on shift last night, according to migrant workers rights specialist Andy Hall.

Malaysiakini understands the worker was on duty at a site identified as “F19 compounding area”.
A 20-second video believed to be taken at the scene of the incident showed a man wearing an unbuttoned blue and yellow uniform shirt and jeans, lying on his back, on top of what appeared to be part of a large machine.
A separate photograph also showed the worker’s identification tag with his personal details, confirming his nationality and work area, as revealed by Hall and at least one other source familiar with the matter.
When contacted, the source said so far there has been little information, beyond a confirmation from factory workers that one of their colleagues had died last night. The nature of the worker’s duties is also currently unclear.
All deaths must be reported to the nearest district police station, and in this case, Klang Utara District police chief Vijaya Rao Samachulu confirmed a report was lodged earlier today.
“Yes, we can confirm receiving a report on the worker’s death. An investigation is currently ongoing,” Vijaya said.
Meanwhile, Hall said the latest death allegedly follows two other recent deaths of Top Glove migrant workers, a Bangladeshi and Nepali national, assigned to the “F22 robotic area” at another factory, also in Klang.
“These are big allegations. We are making these allegations and we have to give Top Glove the right to reply.
“They cannot threaten me or the media or other sources for reporting what the workers are saying,” Hall said.




Migrant workers rights specialist Andy Hall
He said in most cases, it has been difficult to prove direct links between an underlying condition and occupational safety hazard (OSH) risks that allegedly led to deaths of workers.
“These OSH issues are so difficult because of the various causations. Even when I spoke to my friends in London, who are leading medical experts, in order to say a disease is caused by the workplace, it is almost impossible (to prove direct links).
“There are many causation issues and we can never be certain what is the cause of a disease,” said Hall.

No criminal element in the earlier two deaths
Hall said the Bangladeshi worker died in August, while his Nepali colleague died last month.
Another source close to the two workers corroborated their deaths, although claiming most other workers were left in the dark about the actual causes.
It is understood that the Bangladeshi worker had died on Aug 25, within hours of being taken to Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Klang, after being referred by Top Glove’s in-house clinic, where he sought treatment earlier the same day.
Meanwhile, the Nepali worker was said to have died in a worker’s transport van en-route to their accommodation, at the end of a night shift on Sept 8.
Hall, who is also a voluntary special adviser to Top Glove’s sinking fund governance committee, said he had in several communications with the company’s management raised concerns over the two deaths and other complaints.
Top Glove had previously declined comments on the two deaths. Malaysiakini has once again reached out to the company’s management following the third and latest death in three months.
This news portal also understands police investigations into the two deaths had revealed no criminal element.
In August, Bangladeshi media reported a former Top Glove worker diagnosed with stage four stomach cancer sought compensation, believing the illness is due to exposure to chemicals while working at one of Top Glove’s manufacturing plants. 
Top Glove's management at the time said a medical practitioner attending to the worker had said his illness was "food-related", and that the company had already provided the worker with an RM15,000 “goodwill” payment.
'Deaths under-reported'
When contacted, North-South Alliance executive director Adrian Pereira said deaths of factory workers, which may be related to occupational hazards, were more common than expected.




North-South Alliance executive director Adrian Pereira
However, Adrian said, many cases had gone under-reported, particularly if the workers were undocumented.
“We can see the disparity in the statistics shared by the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) if we compare their data with what is reported by embassies.
“By law, any death or serious accident at the workplace must be reported to DOSH,” Adrian told Malaysiakini.
“Companies also prefer not to report so that their operations are not disrupted by temporary closures for investigations. 
“The government, especially DOSH, needs to regulate this in a more systematic manner as no worker's life is worth the billions in profits made,” added the migrant activist.
It was previously reported that Top Glove had posted record profits for four straight quarters prior to the last March-May period that followed the trend with a 485 percent jump in net profit. 
In a stock exchange filing, Top Glove said net profit for the March-May period jumped to RM2.04 billion from RM347.9 million a year ago, while its sales revenue of RM4.8 billion was up 294 percent from a year ago.
Top Glove, which produces 100 billion pieces of gloves a year, had in April resolved all indicators of forced labour in its operations and reopened export channels to the US.
This follows the move by the US Customs authorities to revoke a year-long ban imposed on the company.  - Mkini

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