Uruguay's National Union of Construction and Related Industries (Sunca) Secretary-General Javier Díaz said the rate of labor accidents nationwide has worsened over the past five years and blamed the departing administration of President Luis Lacalle Pou for this, amid waning collective wage bargaining conditions and high unemployment and informality…

… a traffic accident resulting in the death of a Chinese worker led to renewed scrutiny of the China Machinery Engineering Corporation's (CMEC)safety practices…

CMEC, now building the 500-kilovolt transmission ring for the state energy company UTE, is under the spotlight for possible violations of Corporate Criminal Responsibility Law. According to the Sunca, workers live in undignified conditions, without access to refrigeration for their food, in cramped quarters, and with bathrooms without hot water. In some camps, up to 80 people have been housed in containers without adequate safety and hygiene measures.

On Jan. 7, a 53-year-old Chinese worker died after a pickup truck carrying company employees overturned. This incident led to a partial work stoppage and rekindled criticism of the lack of occupational safety.

Authorities are now investigating whether the situation can be classified as forced labor, given the isolation, the language barrier, and the total dependence on the company of these employees…