Professional diseases growing in Kazakhstan

The level of professional diseases is growing in Kazakhstan companies, Tengrinews.kz reports citing Kazakhstan Labor and Social Protection Minister Serik Abdenov as saying at the briefing in the Central Communications Service. “The employer liability in this area has been almost entirely transferred to insurance companies working in this segment. Unfortunately, the level of professional diseases is growing. We are talking namely about primary diseases. There are currently around 350 thousand people working in hazardous and dangerous production facilities. Besides, there is a growth of the injury rate. All that, of course, gives us grounds to reform this segment of the social policies,” the Minister said. According to Serik Abdenov, the level of professional diseases remains high in mining, coal and chemical industries while the construction sector remains the leader by the number of injuries. “This year we will focus not on any specific industries in general, but on the companies that make a bigger impact in this issue,” he added. By Shynar Ospanova