As Jamaica’s drive towards independence and prosperity began to take shape in the middle of the 20th century, manufacturing and mining were seen as the industries that would modernize the country and bring prosperity to the people. Our leaders enacted legislation geared towards the protection of workers’ safety and health and adopted a suite of legislation originating out of the United Kingdom. This included the Factories Act (1943), the Law Reform (Tort-Feasors) Act (1946) and the Mining Act (1947). After Independence, other legislation followed in the Occupier’s Liability Act (1969), the Labour Relations and Industrial Disputes Act (1975) (updated 2014), the Quarries Control Act (1984), the Pesticides Control Act (1987), and the latest being the Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Act (2015).
While these various pieces of legislation have been on the books, the vast majority of Jamaicans have no idea of their existence. Even if their existence was known, they were crafted so long ago that their effectiveness and applicability in a modern Jamaica would be severely limited.
The country has progressed a far way since the 1940’s. There is a well-developed construction industry and the manufacturing industry – while facing challenges to compete on the world stage – is flourishing. The mining industry also continues to contribute significantly to foreign exchange earnings.
Unfortunately, the country has not kept current with respect to workplace safety and health. We have no measures in place to ensure that government agencies are empowered to enforce existing legislation, or to educate employers on what is required of them. In the meantime, improved technology and automation have created significant changes in working conditions. New workplace safety and health hazards have gone largely unidentified and the risks posed by these hazards have not been assessed. Consequently, no control measures have been put in place to minimize injury, ill-health or environmental damage.
“It’s not only working conditions that have changed over time, it’s the nature of health and safety hazards as well…..And this will continue in the future. With all the transformative technological, demographic and environmental changes shaping a new world of work, it becomes more important than ever to anticipate new and emerging health and safety risks.”
ILO Director-General, Guy Ryder
What are some of these new workplace safety and health situations that need to be considered?
Ergonomics
Safety and health professionals have become increasingly aware of a range of workplace injuries associated with overexertion. These are often caused by excessive lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, reaching or stretching. The United States’ National Safety Council (NSC) reports that overexertion is the leading (33.5%) cause of workplace injury resulting in days away from work. These injuries have become known as “ergonomic” injuries and have largely arisen as a result of increased demand to keep pace with technology and complete work tasks at an ever-increasing speed.
Radiation
In recent years, Jamaica has accelerated its association with nuclear science. With rapid technological advancements, modern medical radiation equipment is emitting higher radiation doses. The medical use of radiation is the largest man-made contributor to the overall annual radiation dose humans receive. Radiation is also utilised in manufacturing, imaging at ports of entry and analytical sciences. Now, more than ever, there is a greater likelihood that employees may be exposed to radiation in the workplace. Adherence to the Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Act (2015) as well as greater public awareness is therefore critical in managing the risks associated with radiation in Jamaica.
Aging workforce
Recent advances in medicine allow for more effective treatments for medical conditions which would have prevented many persons from working well into their 60’s and 70’s. While individuals in this age group are generally healthier than those in previous generations, there is still a need to make reasonable accommodations for the aging workforce.
The design of workstations to reduce postural demands and the provision of equipment to suit the full range of physical characteristics of an individual are among the accommodations that should be made for this group.
Shift work
Increasing numbers of employees are expected to do shift work as industries lengthen working hours in order to optimize outputs and profits. These employees face possible disruption of their circadian rhythm (body clock) giving rise to weight gain, impulsivity, slower thinking, and other physiological and behavioural changes. Fatigue, always a major workplace issue even during regular working hours, is worse for shift workers who are at risk from fatigue-related accidents. The hazards posed by shift work also include the inability to focus, which may lead to mistakes, injuries on the job and poor performance.
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO)
The rapid growth of the BPO industry in Jamaica has not been without its challenges. Because of the heavy concentrations of workers in close proximity to each other, indoor air quality problems usually abound. Employees tend to experience high incidences of upper respiratory tract infection, and maintenance personnel struggle to properly balance ventilation and air conditioning systems. Furthermore, there may be hundreds of Display Screen Equipment (DSE) in use with the associated challenges that their usage brings. Incorrect use of DSE such as PC’s, laptops, tablets and smart phones can lead to pain in the neck, shoulders, backs, arms, wrists and hands as well as fatigue and eye strain.
Passage of the Jamaica Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2017
There are countless examples of changed working conditions that could be cited. While many workplace improvements could be mentioned, the reality is that in Jamaica, safety and health legislation is lacking, or at best, outdated. With new technologies being adopted, combined with an increasingly litigious society, cooperation from all stakeholders is necessary. Nearly 25 years in the making, the OSH Bill represents Jamaica’s attempt to modernize its safety and health legislation. This legislation will bring under one umbrella all the disparate pieces of safety legislation in Jamaica. Legislators must hasten to pass and/or update laws designed to protect employees. Employers must discharge their responsibility to create and maintain a safe and healthy work environment and employees must adhere to workplace safety and health policies and procedures developed to protect them. By accomplishing this, Jamaica will indeed become “the place of choice to live, work, raise families and do business”.
WorkSafe Global is an occupational safety and health training and consulting company operating out of Jamaica.
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