Team Herald
PANJIM: On the occasion of the World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD), GOACAN has called for an Action Plan to prevent suicides among workers in Goa in the context of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and keeping in mind the theme for WSPD 2020 “Working Together to Prevent Suicide.”
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In a letter to the Labour Commissioner Raju Gawas, GOACAN has pointed out to news reports about workers ending lives by suicide, over the years, across different parts of Goa. These workers, it says, have worked in industrial estates, private companies and at construction sites.
“There is now concern that there could be an increase in the number of suicides by workers due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This could be due to a number of reasons like loss of jobs, cut in wages, family problems, etc. GOACAN is of the view that there is a need to prepare an Action Plan to prevent suicides among workers in Goa by setting up a Core Committee with members from allied departments and corporations like Health, Social Welfare and GIDC, trade associations like GCCI, CII, GSIA, CREDAI, VIA etc, trade unions like AITUC, CITU & INTUC among others, NGOs and mental health professionals,” convener Roland Martins said in a press release on Thursday.
GOACAN has also urged the Labour Commissioner to take up this initiative so that the labour force and their families in Goa may get the required help in the form of counselling services, access to helplines, sessions on mental health at their workplace.
GOACAN has requested that this initiative be launched latest by October 10 on World Mental Health Day so that labour welfare may be enhanced in Goa.
