References to occupational exposures Workers’ right to information is not protected: The workers have insufficient information regarding the toxic substances they handle or could be exposed to and their potential hazards. For instance, workers are inadequately informed of the hazards of exposure to cutting fluid and of any relevant protection methods. While factory regulations require providing a 24-hour training to workers prior to starting work, the training offered is neither adequate nor effective. Training sessions are frequently less than an hour long and workers are handed questionnaires, the answers to which are read out by the staff. Such a practice restricts workers from fully understanding the nature and potential hazards of the toxic substance they handle or could be exposed to. Furthermore, information is not available regarding the exposure levels of workers to various toxic chemicals that are commonly used in electronics production and relevant information about the use of toxic chemicals at the factory. Workers are not provided with adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Excluding some workers who wear glasses, all other workers in the workshop operate machinery with no eye protection. The CNC machining workshop provides workers with a pair each of rubber and cotton gloves every day. However, the cotton gloves appear to be have been previously used as they would be given to the workers while they were already damp and water-stained. The cutting fluid which CNC machine operators come into contact with is absorbed quickly by the cotton gloves along with other chemicals, oils, and fluids, thus eroding the rubber gloves worn inside. This results in the workers’ hands making direct contact with the cotton gloves soaked in cutting fluid. The inadequate equipment has resulted in irritation and peeling off of skin on the hands of many workers. In addition, for workers who use pressure guns in the production process, the cutting oil splashes onto their heads. Single-use paper face masks provided by the factory only protect the workers’ mouths and faces and the cutting fluid often splashes into the workers’ eyes resulting in complications like eye pain, blurred vision and bloodshot eyes for prolonged periods. Workers face inadequate access to health and sanitation facilities: Workers at the factory are responsible for paying for their physical examinations. Workers do not undergo physical examinations after they resign making it difficult to determine if they have contracted an occupational disease as a result of working at the factory. Workers applying through labour dispatch companies are not given social insurance during their probationary work period. Workers do not have access to healthcare services and have to pay for any occupational treatment out of pocket for the first three months of work, as Catcher only distributes social insurance cards three months after the contract commences. While there is legal provision for access to treatment for occupational illnesses, many workers remain vulnerable due to inadequate access to contractual documents from the employer, insufficient or lack of regular health checks for workers, and unsatisfactory or lack of workplace evaluations which would be evidence for the worker to prove the link between exposure and the illness. The bathrooms in the factory’s housing area do not have adequate hot water facilities even during the winter. Workers have on occasion fallen ill due to inadequate heating and insufficient shelter from the wind in the shower areas. There are also no emergency hallways or exits in the workers’ Challenges faced by workers A/HRC/39/48 60 Report