PANAMA CITY, Feb 15 (bdnews24.com/Reuters) - Panamanian construction workers clashed violently with police and blocked major roads on Friday, the third day of protests that have paralyzed the capital since the death of a worker earlier this week.

Local television showed piles of tires burning on roads and highways across the capital that would ordinarily be choked with rush hour traffic.

Protesters also threw stones at riot police in the affluent Paitilla area of the city, home to many of Panama's glass-covered skyscrapers.

It is the latest in a series of clashes since the fatal shooting of a construction worker from the SUNTRACS union on Tuesday during a protest.

A construction boom has boosted the country's economy and created a shimmering skyline in Panama City, but union members have taken to the streets in recent months to protest what they say are lax safety standards at the city's many building sites.

SUNTRACS leaders accuse the police of killing union leader Airomi Smith as part of an orchestrated campaign. The government has announced an investigation.

Speaking to RPC TV on Friday, Panama City Mayor Juan Carlos Navarro called for calm and for the union to return to the negotiating table.

Hundreds of workers marched to the presidential palace late on Thursday to present a series of demands to the government.

They called for new laws governing building-site safety and the resignation of the minister of justice and the head of the national police force.

bdnews24.com/mar/2101 hrs