Making work safety a culture
The Star Online, 29 April 2015
TAN SRI LEE LAM THYE - Chairman, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
WORLD OSH Day is celebrated on April 28 each year to commemorate the Day for the Dead and Injured Workers in occupational accidents and diseases.
Being a member of the international community, Malaysia commemorates World OSH Day and regards it as an integral part of the national strategy in promoting a preventative safety and health culture.
The theme for this year is “Join in building a culture of prevention on OSH”.
The International Labour Organisation celebrates World Day for Safety and Health to promote prevention of occupational accidents and diseases globally.
It is an awareness–raising campaign to focus international attention on the emerging trends in the field of occupational safety and health on the magnitude of work-related injuries, diseases and fatalities worldwide.
Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) or safety at the workplace is a matter that must never be taken for granted. Time and again it has been proven that failure to adopt and implement safety rules and procedures will be detrimental to those at the workplace.
Although Malaysia’s industrial accident rate had been reduced to 37% over the past 11 years (2003-2014) the remaining challenge would be to build and foster an OSH culture and strive towards an accident-free workplace environment.
The latest statistics from the Human Resources Ministry indicate that the industrial accident rate has fallen from 5.84 cases for every 1,000 workers in 2004 to 3.10 cases last year.
This reduction reflects the commitment and joint efforts by the Government, employers and employees to reduce workplace accidents.
While we are pleased with the success, the biggest challenge that remains is not only to further reduce the accident rate but also to make OSH a culture and a way of life.
It is the responsibility of employers and managements to ensure that safety is a culture and not just a priority. There is an urgent need to translate OSH knowledge into behaviour and practical application.
We must avoid a situation where behind all the OSH banners and signages the workplace hazards are not addressed and controlled.
In this connection, innovation and innovative practices play a crucial role in improving the OSH landscape and shaping Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems (OSHMS) for the future.
Establishing a safe and healthy work environment requires fundamental changes in the way work is designed and personnel are deployed, and how the very culture of the organisation understands and acts on safety.
These changes require leadership capable of transforming not just a physical environment, but also the beliefs and practices of those who create the risk and who work with the risk.
Managements that are responsible for the safety and health at the workplace can change the attitude of safety and health of their employees by ensuring an annual budget for safety training and education to help prevent work-related accidents and diseases among the workforce.
In this time of global competition and sweeping change, it is not enough for companies to make safety a priority. Priorities change but cultures stand the test of time. Safety must be a culture and a core value at the workplace.
The Global Trend in OSH is towards a more integrated prevention concept. OSH is now regarded as a societal responsibility and countries are required to have a blueprint for building an accident prevention culture with a framework for national and international prevention strategies.
Protecting workers health requires a broader prevention approach which emphasises on:
> Reducing workplace accidents and occupational diseases through measures such as law enforcement, risk assessment and a OSH management system;
> Promoting a prevention culture by raising awareness involving all relevant stakeholders and building partnerships;
> Making occupational safety and health into education and training mainstream; and
> Promoting health and safety as an integral part of lifestyle.
It has been shown that an increase in productivity and improvement in the workplace environment are the results of good safety and health work practices and the adoption of a work safety culture.
