President of the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA), Rafeek Khan highlighted during a recent seminar with employers and members of the Government’s Labour Department that health and safety remain critical in today’s workplace. He pointed to the number of industrial accidents that have occurred within the last year; some of which has led to death.
Speaking during the engagement on Wednesday at Regency Suites, Khan highlighted that based on the current analysis, more emphasis should be placed on applicable safety gear at the relevant companies and industries.
Khan further noted that the safety of workers must be the primary responsibility of employers, adding that management in companies must lead by example when it comes to employees wearing safety gear in the factories, construction sites, and elsewhere.
“It should be natural. We should want to treat health and safety as something very, very important. We should want to treat our labour laws and compliance as something very, very important regardless of which sector may be leading the charge,” Khan said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton underlined the importance of practicing health and safety as the country undergoes massive transformation. He noted that more than ever, health and safety is important, especially in the construction and oil and gas sectors.
He noted that the Board of Industrial Training, which falls under the purview of the ministry, remains committed to providing various technical and vocational training programmes to persons and placements of apprentices in various companies.
Additionally, Chief Labour Officer, Dhaneshwar Deonarine said the seminar forms part of the ministry’s continuous efforts to build fruitful partnerships with the business community and the GMSA.
This, he said aligns with Sustainable Development Goal number 17 which speaks to ‘partnerships for the goals.’ He added that the ministry sees this partnership as a way to encourage, promote, and ensure compliance with labour laws related not only to the conditions of work, but also to occupational, safety and health across the country.
Some of the participants at the seminar included representatives/companies from the oil and gas industry, forestry, agriculture, agro-processing, poultry, pharmaceutical, arts and craft, education, machinery, and construction sectors.
