In a statement delivered to the Funchal City Council (CMF), the ADN-Madeira party stated the conditions of municipal employees who work as professional gravediggers.
The ADN candidate for the Funchal municipality, Miguel Pita, pointed out that gravediggers feel very discriminated against and marginalised in terms of justice and labour rights, in addition to their work not being respected or recognised by other people.
Miguel Pita highlights the lack of adequate material for performing the functions, including appropriate boots and gloves, psychological support, and a salary commensurate with the reality and responsibility they face, as well as a review of the retirement age, noting that it is “a profession of great physical and psychological exhaustion.”
In this sense, DNA notes that “in the twenty-first century, many graves are still dug by hand, as there is only one Komatsu PC30 excavator in St. Martin’s cemetery, which is sometimes transported to other cemeteries in Funchal.” In view of the unavailability of this equipment, graves have to be dug manually, either on hard and dry earth during the Summer in the heat or mud during the winter, where workers are exposed to the rain and cold.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.om
