We had ladders and a bucket. We sometimes fell from the ladder. I fell down four times in one month. It wasn’t very high so I wasn’t injured. The soil was soft so the ladder wasn’t very stable.259 Ghulam S., aged 15, also spoke of the consequences of falling: Some trees were big. Two persons collected [from below] as far as hands could reach, and two climbed on a ladder to pick [from the top].… Sometimes people fell down from the ladder. My friend fell down and was unconscious for 30 minutes. Once he fell down and broke his finger. 260 Agricultural laborers are typically paid by the amount of fruit they harvest. Such schemes lead to competitive work environments in which every person tries to harvest as fast as he possibly can. This increases the likelihood of accidents as workers are less likely to take precautions. Twenty-five-year-old Yusuf K. described the competitive work environment during the olive harvest in Sparti: “We had to climb onto the tree to collect the olives. It was dangerous and many people fell down. Everybody tried to work fast to fill their boxes. It was very competitive.… I fell down many times.”261 In garment manufacturing, children typically have to work for 10-12 hours per day over a period of several months. Although the work itself is not subject to hazards, the excessively long work hours, coupled with the fact that they have to perform repeated tasks over prolonged periods in the same physical position, pose a health risk. Zahir B. told us: “The work was very hard, especially to sit in a chair for so many hours. It was an easy job that didn’t require special knowledge but it was hard. I had back pain and shoulder pain, because I always had to lean forward I now have pain in my neck.”262 259 Human Rights Watch interview with Hafez S., Volos, June 11, 2008. 260 Human Rights Watch interview with Aktar P., Athens, June 6, 2008. 261 Human Rights Watch interview with Yusuf K., Athens, May 23, 2008. 262 Human Rights Watch interview with Zahir B., Athens, May 29, 2008. 79 Human Rights Watch December 2008