Strict rules for glass cleaners mind safety

Stricter measures to see that all glass cleaners in Shanghai have been properly trained are being adopted to ensure the safety of workers, after two people died last year from falls that could have been prevented, local authorities said Sunday.

The city's environmental sanitation administration said that glass cleaning companies will be more closely monitored to see that they insist that workers have the licenses legally required before hiring them.

The move follows a proposal submitted by Tu Haiming, a Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Shanghai Committee member, during this year's two sessions.

It came after cries that the deaths of the two glass workers who fell to their deaths last year could have been avoided, if only they had known how to properly secure their safety while cleaning the windows of the high-rise building.

"It's dangerous to clean the windows of high buildings," Tu told the Global Times Sunday. "Glass cleaning companies do not necessarily train their workers, so it's important that they have the training before entering the workforce."

Tu said that while the city's 220 registered glass cleaning companies are subject to penalties if they hire unqualified staff - and even criminal charges, pending the situation - the regulation has not been wholeheartedly adopted by authorities.

Glass cleaning companies will also be required to purchase insurance for workers under the new rules, added Tu.

Some 12,424 window cleaners in the city have been trained over the past nine years, according to official statistics.