The Department of Science and Technology – IX (DOST-IX), through its Provincial Science and Technology Office – Zamboanga Sibugay Province (PSTO-ZSP), in partnership with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC) Regional Extension Unit 9, successfully conducted the two-day “Training on Basic Occupational Safety Health for DOST-SETUP assisted MSMEs in Zamboanga Sibugay”.
The training aims to provide awareness on safety and health for enterprises assisted under the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP) and capacitate the firm in formulating their own OSH program to ensure business sustainability, as well as identify potential hazards in their workplace.
During the conduct of technology needs assessment for SETUP firms, it is a common finding that the MSMEs/firms lack awareness on Occupational Safety and Health (OSH). Hence, most (if not all) of the firms, do not have preventive / control systems (hazards analysis and control) in their workplace resulting to a higher risk of causing great discomfort and inefficiency among the workers leading to work-related accidents such as, injury, sickness, disability, or even death.
The latest International Labour Organization (ILO) figures reveal that for every 15 seconds, 160 workers experience at least one work-related accident. And for every 15 seconds, a worker dies from a work-related accident or disease.
Everyday, 6,300 people die as a result of occupational accidents or work-related diseases – more than 2.3 million deaths per year. Over 337 million accidents occur on the job annually; many of these resulting in extended absences from work. The human cost of this daily adversity is vast and the economic burden of poor occupational safety and health practices is estimated at 4% of global Gross Domestic product each year.
The Provincial Science and Technology Office – Zamboanga Sibugay has been implementing initiatives for our SETUP cooperators to ensure that Occupational Safety and Health principles are implemented in the work place.
The Department of Labor and Employment – Occupational Safety and Health Center headed by Engr. Leni Garcia shared their technical know-how on Basic Occupatinal Safety and Health (OSH) and provided training certificate to SMEs who actively participated the training.
A total of 34 SETUP cooperators and their assigned enterprise workers completed the training and are now certified as Safety Officer I.
For more information, please contact the DOST-IX Provincial Science and Technology Office in Zamboanga Sibugay Province at (062) 955-0825 or 09178494214. And to be updated on the latest happenings, please follow our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/DOSTRegion9 (DOST-IX Press Release).
