The Social Security Organisation (Socso) has recorded an average of 43 deaths of workers per day last year, involving industrial accidents and non-communicable diseases.

Socso chief executive officer Dr Mohammed Azman Aziz Mohammed said among the non-communicable diseases that had caused the death of the workers were hypertension, heart diseases and diabetes.

“The number of industrial accidents had increased by six percent to 33,319 cases last year from 31,314 cases in 2016, while fatal cases saw a slight decrease to 924 cases last year from 963 cases in 2016,” he told a press conference after the briefing and hand-over ceremony of Socso grants in Kuala Lumpur today.

At the event, Socso chairperson Aseh Che Mat presented the grants totalling RM5,804,007.50 to 32 selected institutions and non-governmental organisations to implement 704 accident prevention programmes, including seminar, courses and consultancy.

Meanwhile, acting director-general of Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros) Dr Siti Zaharah Ishak, who represented Miros in receiving the grant, said Miros had always been concerned about the safety of workers using motorcycles to go to work.

As such, she said Miros had introduced a three-phase road safety programme nationwide.

“The first phase involved 20 companies in Selangor. This is the baseline platform for an engagement between safety health officers and the companies to train their officers and staff.

“The second phase involved 95 companies nationwide and would engage their employees directly as we carried out several activities, including motorcycle inspection, defensive riding training and road safety seminar.

“The third phase involved an evaluation of the outcome and the effectiveness of the modules after being introduced for a year,” she added.

- Bernama