CEO: BPHB committed to promoting safety culture
BINTULU: Many workplace accidents are entirely preventable through the use of tried and tested practices and adherence to international standards.
Bintulu Port Holdings Berhad ( BPHB) Group of Companies is committed to the safety of all individuals related to it and is mandated to promote safety culture in all parts of life during work and at home, says group chief executive officer Dato Mohammad Medan Abdullah.
“The fact is that on- the-job accidents don’t just happen, they are caused. For example, cancer, which accounts for a third of all work-related deaths, is caused by asbestos, other carcinogenic dusts and chemicals and ionising radiation.
“Causes can be addressed and the suffering can be prevented,” he said at the launch of the Mega OSH Toolbox 2018 programme at Biport Bulkers here yesterday, attended by some 250 BPHB employees.
The programme was held simultaneously throughout the country yesterday in conjunction with World OSH Day 2018.
Mohammad Medan pointed out that the participation of workers is also essential in order to implement solutions at an enterprise level effectively.
“Even the best-prepared guidelines will have little impact unless the workers themselves are able to express themselves on issues and make proposals based upon their own experiences in the workplace,” he said.
He added employers are obliged
The fact is that on-the-job accidents don’t just happen, they are caused. For example, cancer, which accounts for a third of all work-related deaths, is caused by asbestos, other carcinogenic dusts and chemicals and ionising radiation. Causes can be addressed and the suffering can be prevented.
to ensure safe and healthy working environment while workers are required to work safely, protect themselves and not endanger others, know their rights, and to participate in the implementation of preventive measures.
“Each of us is responsible for stopping deaths and injuries on the job. Therefore, the World Day for Safety and Health at Work must serve as a wake-up call.”
The World Day for Safety and Health at Work ( World OSH Day) took place on April 28.
The day was declared by the International Labour Organisation ( ILO) and has been observed by ILO since 2003 to promote the prevention of occupational accidents and diseases globally.
It is an awareness-raising 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.
According to Mohammad Medan, an occupational safety and health culture is one in which the right to a safe and healthy working environment is respected at all levels where governments, employers and workers actively participate in securing a safe and healthy working environment through a system of defined rights, responsibilities and duties, and where the highest priority is accorded to the principle of prevention.
“Occupational safety and health can be important for moral, legal and financial reasons,” he said.
Thus he believed all organisations have a duty of care to ensure that employees and any other person who may be affected by the companies’ undertaking remain safe at all times.
“Moral obligations would involve the protection of employees’ lives and health. Legal reasons of OSH practices relate to the preventive, punitive and compensatory effects of laws that protect worker’s safety and health,” he added.
Bintulu Port Sdn Bhd chief operating officer Omar Salleh and Biport Bulkers Sdn Bhd chief operating officer Yusof Ibrahim were also present.
Dato Mohammad Medan Abdullah, Bintulu Port Holdings Berhad (BPHB) Group of Companies chief executive officer