DOSH to introduce new laws, regulations – State director
Borneo Post Online, 5 September 2014
KUCHING: The Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) is expected to introduce a number of new laws and regulations for more effective enforcement of the existing Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) 1994.
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Mohd Hatta (centre) flanked by Tee (left) and Foo speaking to reporters at the news conference.
Its state director Ir Mohd Hatta Zakaria revealed that some were still being drafted while others were already submitted to the Attorney General’s (AG’s) Office for approval.
“Among the proposed new regulation is the Occupational Safety and Health Management System which is aimed at ensuring that industries manage all occupational safety and health issues at place of work more systematically,” he said.
He told reporters this after opening Master Builders Association Malaysia (MBAM) Seminar on Occupational Safety and Health in construction industry here yesterday.
He said other proposed regulations are Occupational Safety and Health (Inquiry Procedures), Occupational Safety and Health (Safety and Health Officer), Occupational Safety and Health (Safety and Health Committee), Factories and Machinery (Persons in-charge) and Factories and Machinery (Building Operation and Works of Engineering Construction Safety).
He said one of the objectives of introducing the new laws and regulation was to enhance the standard of safety and health in the various sectors with the aim of reducing the number of occupational accidents.
“Our target is to achieve three accidents per 1,000 workers before the country achieves a fully developed nation status in year 2020. Our current rate is around 3.28 accidents in every 1,000 workers.
“Of course, from the 400,000 workforce that we have in Sarawak most of them go to work and return home safely but what we want is to be on par with other developed nations,” Hatta stressed.
He added that for the whole of last year a total of 34 fatalities due to accidents at the workplace were reported in all sectors, out of which eight were in the construction industry.
“For this year, as of to date there are four fatalities in the construction sector reported and investigated by us and our hope is the number will continue to decrease,” he said.
In this regard, he praised MBAM and Sarawak Building and Civil Engineering Contractors Association (SBCECA) for their initiative in organising the seminar.
He said to achieve this target it is vital for the various relevant government agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to work closely together to ensure that awareness level among all industry players can be further enhanced.
Meanwhile, MBAM president Mathew Tee in his opening speech said as Sarawak prospers and with more major projects in the state, its construction industry is expected to continue to play a key role in generating its economic growth.
“Sarawak is projected to see its economy expand by five per cent, fuelled by the dynamic economic activities of the ongoing projects in the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) and infrastructure and development projects under the 10th Malaysia Plan.
“With all the development projects in the pipeline, Sarawak should also note that construction sites contributed over 30 per cent out of the total deaths due to occupational accidents in Sarawak last year.
“In addition, up to June this year, Sarawak recorded three cases of occupational accidents involving scaffolding. With this in mind, the seminar is timely as it educates the people of the land on the importance of enhancing safety and health in the construction industry,” Tee said.
For the benefit of the participants, he said the organiser had invited qualified speakers to present their papers during the seminar.
Among those present at the news conference yesterday were Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) director Mohd Merzan Hashim, SBCECA deputy chairman Andy Lai and MBAM deputy president Foo Chek Lee.
