World Day For Safety And Health At Work 

It is imperative to know that organizations such as the International Labour Organizations (ILO) and the United Nations (UN) actively promote the World Day for Safety and Health at Work on April 28 every year. 

The day was declared by the ILO basically to promote the prevention of occupational hazards and diseases globally. In other words, the World Day for Safety and Health at Work is an awareness-creation campaign intended to focus international attention on emerging trends in the field of occupational safety and health and on the magnitude of work-related injuries, diseases and fatalities worldwide.

 It is instructive to know that community leaders and organizations representatives often promote the day by speaking out on issues such as workplace health and safety standards that are internationally acclaimed. Similarly, various media have promoted the day through their editorial columns, news stories, features, commentaries and other broadcast programmes.

Different types of events and activities that have a bearing on workplace health and safety are organized in many countries on or around April 28 each year to commemorate the day and to indicate its significance to the global labour force. The importance of occupational safety and health (OSH) to the recruitment, training and employment of workers cannot be over-emphsised.

OHS is a cross-cutting disciplinary subject focused on protecting the safety, health and welfare of people engaged in work or employment. Indeed, the goals of occupational safety and health programmes are to foster a safe and healthy work environment, protect employees, family members, employers, customers or clients and many others who are likely to be affected by the nature of the workplace environment.

Occupational safety and health, for all its’ intends and purposes, is important for moral, legal, and financial reasons. This is informed by the fact that all organizations, public or private, have the responsibility of care and thus are to ensure that employees and any other persons who are likely to be affected by their actions and inactions remain safe at all times.

 Whilst moral obligations would involve the protection of employee’s lives and health, legal obligations would involve preventive, punitive and compensatory effects of laws and regulations that protect employees’ safety and health.

It is sad to note that, many employers including government have for since time immemorial, closed their ears and eyes to the demands of employees for a safe and conducive working environment that more or less serves as a motivating factor for worker satisfaction and increased productivity.

Government and other employers as well as organized labour is being urged to ensure that the workplace environment is safe and healthy for all categories of workers to enable them engage in productive activities in the most effective and efficient manner. 

BY DAN OSMAN MWIN, A SOCIO-POLITICAL COMMENTATOR AND A PUBLIC RELATIONS PRACTITIONER WITH THE NATIONAL AMBULANCE SERVICE