Compensable work-related injuries in the estates of a tea manufacturing company.

Sir, Work-related morbidity and mortality not only result in suffering and hardships for the worker and his or her family, but also add to the overall cost to society through lost productivity and increased use of medical and welfare services.1 According to a study undertaken by the International Labour Organization in Sri Lanka, occupational hazards in the tea manufacturing industry can be varied and disability or death occurring as a consequence of work-related injuries have resulted in the payment of compensation to the injured workers or their dependents.2 Another study carried out in Uganda has revealed that almost two-thirds of employees had suffered from work-related illness or injury, and almost 30.3% reported facing occupational safety hazards at least every month.3 Leigh et al. estimated that about 38 million Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) or 2.7% of all world DALYs were due to occupational factors.1 According to the International Labour Organization, diseases related to work cause the most deaths among workers. Hazardous substances alone are estimated to cause 438,489 deaths a year.4