Italian
The National Coordination of Teachers of Human Rights (CNDDU), on the occasion of the World Day for Safety and Health at Work, celebrated on April 28, 2025, invites all educational institutions at every level to dedicate moments of reflection, study, and awareness on the fundamental topic of safety in the workplace.
Established by the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Day represents an extraordinary opportunity to reaffirm the importance of preventing accidents and occupational diseases, central themes for the protection of human rights and the promotion of safe, dignified, and respectful work environments.
Every year, millions of workers around the world experience work-related accidents or illnesses. According to the latest data from the ILO, over 2.9 million people die each year due to work-related accidents and illnesses.
Work safety in Italy continues to be one of the most serious and persistent emergencies, despite legislative efforts and awareness campaigns.
The updated data for 2025 highlight a critical situation in Italy regarding workplace safety. The increase in work-related deaths and injuries among students during PCTO emphasizes the urgent need for structural interventions and greater focus on prevention. It is essential for institutions, businesses, and the educational system to collaborate to ensure safe working and learning environments for everyone.
In the month of January 2025 alone, there have already been 60 workplace fatalities, marking a 33.3% increase compared to the same period last year. Regions with the highest incidence of workplace mortality include Umbria, Trentino-Alto Adige, Calabria, Basilicata, Puglia, and Piemonte.
The trend continued in February, with 101 deaths at work and 37 during commutes, bringing the total to 138 fatalities in the month of February.
The most affected age groups are those between 45 and 54 years old, followed by young people between 15 and 24 years old, with an incidence of 2.5 deaths per million workers. Foreign workers appear to be particularly vulnerable, with a mortality rate more than double that of Italians.
The sectors with the highest number of fatalities are manufacturing and transportation and storage, both with 12 deaths at work, followed by construction with 11 deaths. At the regional level, Lombardy records the highest number of victims, followed by Veneto, Puglia, Lazio, Piedmont, and Tuscany.
Particularly concerning is the increase in injuries among students, as we have already emphasized, involved in pathways for transversal skills and orientation (PCTO). The reports of student injuries of all levels submitted to INAIL by the month of February were 15,734, an increase of 3.3% compared to the 15,236 in 2024. There were five reports of student deaths of all levels submitted to INAIL by February 2025, one in 2024.
We want to remember what happened on February 27, 2025, to Samuele, a 17-year-old student from Rieti, who was taken to the emergency room and operated on his right arm for a serious fracture, because he was working at the lathe during the hours of PCTO (formerly school-work alternation), instead of being at school, the Rosatelli technical institute.
Furthermore, not to forget, we want to mention the cases of the students Giuliano De Seta, Lorenzo Parelli, Giuseppe Lenoci, who were victims of a workplace accident during the PCTO in 2022, whose stories we had previously reported and followed.
These alarming figures remind us how workplace safety is not a marginal issue, but an absolute priority to be addressed with responsibility and commitment at every level of society, starting from school education
Schools play a strategic role in building a culture of prevention and safety; educating students from a young age on the principles of health protection, individual and collective responsibility, and respect for current regulations means laying the foundation for a future society that is more aware, fair, and civilized.
To this end, we propose that on April 28, 2025, the following initiatives be organized in schools: thematic lessons on the history and evolution of workers’ rights, with a focus on the most relevant international and national regulatory tools (including ILO Convention No. 155, the Italian Constitution, the Consolidated Safety Act – Legislative Decree 81/2008); meetings and seminars with industry experts (RSPP, representatives from ASL, jurists, occupational psychologists) to provide students with a concrete and up-to-date perspective; interdisciplinary projects (literary, artistic, multimedia) addressing the theme of safety, to stimulate creativity and critical thinking; testimonies from victims of workplace accidents or their families, in order to make the meaning of prevention more tangible and human; simulations and practical workshops on correct behaviors to adopt in school and work environments.
In particular, we invite students and teachers to join the national campaign “Safety is a right, not a privilege” conceived by CNDDU, which involves the creation of works (posters, articles, videos) to be spread on schools’ social and institutional channels, with the aim of promoting a shared message of attention and commitment to safety.
Work safety is a fundamental human right. It is impossible to talk about progress, economic development, or social growth without ensuring healthy and safe working environments for everyone. Our society must consider the health and physical integrity of workers as primary assets, protectable through information, training, and education.
The National Coordination of Teachers in the field of Human Rights reaffirms that it is precisely through education on legality, active citizenship, and human rights that we can build a widespread culture of security, aimed at preventing tragedies, protecting human dignity, and promoting a fairer future.
The CNDDU asks the Minister of Education and Merit, Prof. Giuseppe Valditara, for further measures to protect students during the PCTO and a monitoring system that can show the level of efficiency/safety achieved by various secondary schools in order to recognize and commend virtuous educational institutions.
