Accident at Eni’s ethylene plant in Sicily kills two
9/9/2015 12:00:00 AM
Two contract workers were killed in an accident at Eni's chemical plant in Sicily, news reports confirmed on Wednesday.
The Sicilian plant was operated by Eni's Versalis chemical unit. The two workers, employed by a third-party contractor, had been carrying out inspection work at the Versalis ethylene plant in Priolo.
The workers, identified as Salvatore Pizzolo and Michele Assente, reportedly died after falling into an industrial sewage vat at the Priolo Gargallo petrochemical complex.
One of the workers fell into the vat as they were setting up a small CCTV camera by its edge, and the other man then also tumbled in while trying to serve his workmate.
The company said the causes of the incident are still under investigation, adding that Eni considers the safety of its employees and contracts of the utmost importance.
Italy's three largest trade unions have called for a strike on Thursday at the Priolo industrial area, a union official told news agency Reuters.
"Unfortunately in Italy contractors are considered second-class workers with few rights and safeguards," said Enrico Miceli, general secretary of trade union Filctem-Cgil .
Versalis is Italy's largest chemical company by sales, production volumes and employees.
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