The Labour Department is being accused of failing to protect workers, as three inquiries consider the deaths of people on the job.
The death two years ago of a man in a lift at Fonterra's Edendale Plant and the 2008 fatal explosion at the Tamahere coolstore in Hamilton are the subject of inquests.
There is also the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Pike River.
The Engineering, Printing & Manufacturing Union says there is a growing problem with employers' attitudes towards workplace safety.
It blames the Department of Labour for failing to enforce strong safety standards.
