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Work is more deadly than war

May 10, 2002 | Page 2

THREE TIMES more people die each year from work-related accidents or diseases than are killed in wars. That's the incredible finding of a report from the International Labor Organization (ILO).

ILO researchers say that death and suffering caused by work have risen to unprecedented levels worldwide--and get worse by the day. More than 2 million people die from work-related accidents or diseases each year, up from 1.2 million in just the last two years.

Accidents alone claim some 350,000 lives a year. About the same number die because they were poisoned by hazardous substances. Asbestos caused some 100,000 of these deaths last year.

One factor in skyrocketing workplace death statistics, say ILO officials, is globalization. Multinational corporations have moved some operations to less developed countries, "where labor is not only cheaper but less protected," said ILO official Jukka Takala.

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