Every fifteen seconds a worker dies from work-related accident or disease, and another 153 workers have a work-related accident around the world, according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO). It is estimated that each year about 2,020,000 workers die of work-related diseases, while 321,000 are killed on the job, mostly in the developing countries. In recent years therefore, the promotion of occupational safety and health at the workplace has assumed a greater relevance and significance worldwide.
Every fifteen seconds a worker dies from work-related accident or disease, and another 153 workers have a work-related accident around the world, according to the International Labour Organisation (ILO). It is estimated that each year about 2,020,000 workers die of work-related diseases, while 321,000 are killed on the job, mostly in the developing countries. In recent years therefore, the promotion of occupational safety and health at the workplace has assumed a greater relevance and significance worldwide.
Globally, there are 337 million fatal and non-fatal accidents, and 160 million suffer from various work-related diseases every year. In Pakistan, the conditions are worse, though statistics are either not available or are unreliable about work-related accidents, injuries and diseases, in spite of the fact that a Labour Force Survey is conducted regularly. Accidents are common in various economic sectors, due to non-compliance of related labour laws and weak supervision by the concerned government authorities, adversely affecting a large number of workers across the country. There are a number of health problems too.
But most of these accidents and incidents go unreported. Sadly, the working conditions in most of the establishments are substandard, with no concept of adopting preventive and control measures, especially in the informal sector. Most of the 53.67 million employed workforce, including female and children, are poor, illiterate and semi-trained, and thus exposed to various occupational hazards. On the other hand, work environments are far from satisfying and acceptable by any standards.
The rate of non-fatal occupational injuries in the country has been rising consistently from 2.1 percent in 2007-08 to 4.1 percent in 2012-13, reflecting poorly on the government and the employer to promote workplace safety and health. As an example, there were 389 new cases of occupational fatalities and 512 non-fatal injuries reported in 2012 in the Punjab province alone, resulting in loss of 1,763 days, and turning many workers jobless. Nonetheless, the suffering caused by such accidents to workers and their families is incalculable. The range and scope of occupational safety and health covers all the industrial, commercial, agricultural and service sectors, utilities, manufacturing, transport, communications, hotels and restaurants, mining, quarrying, construction, fisheries and the SMEs.
Textile is the single largest industry in terms of production output and employment. Many chemicals are used in textile industry for various processes, and these processes generate noise, dust and emissions of toxic chemicals, which all are injurious to the health. In addition, large quantities of waste are generated, adding to air and water pollution.
Conditions of the workplace in the textile industry are deplorable, except a few units in the formal sector. Similar is the case with the cement industry, which has expanded manifold in recent years but has failed to protect its workers from cement-dust in the workplace and surrounding environments. Iron and steel and engineering sector is the second largest industry in terms of employment, where different processes generate dust, smoke, poisonous gases and substances, vibrations and noise.
Other industries like leather, paper, metal, rubber, fertiliser, paints, plastic and ceramics generate significant environmental hazards, and, resultantly, cause illness and injuries not only to the workers but also to the general public. High-risk areas relate to the mining, manufacturing, power generation, transport, and construction sectors. Safety in handling and use of chemicals and radio-active materials is of prime importance. Transportation of hazardous materials is responsible for killing a large number of workers, and disabilities related to machine operations are common. The work-related diseases caused by chemical, physical, and biological agents are classified by the ILO as respiratory (asthma, tuberculosis), skin, infectious and parasitic, allergies, occupational cancer, musculoskeletal disorders and stress-related illnesses including mental and behavioural disorders.
The prevalent laws, except KP Factories Act 2013, are obsolete, outdated and non-conforming to the international practices. These laws have lost their effectiveness over the years. There is no proper surveillance at the workplaces by the concerned authorities, and health promotion activities are generally lacking. Following a constitutional amendment, the subject of labour has been delegated to the provincial legislative power, including the field of occupational safety and health, at great disadvantage to the workforce.
Labour departments of the provincial governments are responsible for improving working conditions and controlling safety and health hazards at workplace under the relevant laws and regulations. These include the Mines Act 1923, Workmen Compensation Act 1923, Factories Act 1934, Dock Labourers Act 1934, Provincial Employees Social Security Ordinance 1965, West Pakistan Shops and Establishments Ordinance 1969, and Boilers and Pressure Vessels Ordinance 2002. The Hazardous Occupations Rules 1963 is another relevant legislation under the authority of Factories Act 1934.
Ironically, there are only 337 labour inspectors countrywide to undertake inspection of the various establishments, and monitoring, compliance and implementation of the occupational safety and health rules and practices. Likewise, the facilities for providing information and training to labour/workers on the subject are lacking. In practice, only the formal sector employees are covered under the relevant laws, whereas major groups including multinational companies have recently achieved some progress in this direction. Agriculture sector, which is the mainstay of employment, and other sectors like housing, construction and transport, are outside the scope of labour laws, and, consequently, occupational safety and health standards.
One of the reasons of the inadequate and ineffective mechanism for occupational safety and health is the fact that Pakistan has not yet ratified various ILO Conventions on the subject, which sadly reflects, on one hand, apathetic and indifferent attitude towards worker and worker’s welfare, and, on the other, on minimal importance given by the government. These ILO conventions include the Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention 1952, the Employment Injury Benefits Convention 1964 (amended in 1980), the Occupational Cancer Convention 1974, the Occupational Health and Safety Convention 1981, the Occupational Health Services Convention 1985, the Safety and Health in Construction Convention 1988, the Safety and Health in Mines Convention 1995, and the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention 2006.
Lately, the world attention was drawn to poor workplace conditions in Pakistan when a fire broke out in a garment factory in Karachi in 2012, which has been known as the Baldia Town incident, in which about 300 workers died and more than 1,000 workers lost their jobs as the whole factory was destroyed. Sadly, even this tragedy did not serve as a wake–up call for the government, and a national policy, system and programme on occupational safety and health are still missing. The recently-released advertisement by the Directorate of Labour, Sindh is a case in point. It aims at creating awareness among the workers of the hazards of working in the quartz stone crushing and grinding sub-sector, which cause fatal occupational diseases such as lung cancer (silicosis) resulting in death. But the advertisement, in English text, printed in the English newspapers, speaks volume of the disgusting attitude as it cautions the workers not to put “life at risk for petty benefit”, and advises them to "refuse to work without safety precautions".
Nonetheless, the ILO and the European nations are now working in a big way to promoting safety culture, achieving a safe and healthy environment, and to strengthening institutional mechanism for effective labour inspection systems in Pakistan. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends focusing on the workers' physical environment, psycho-social environment and personal health environment, involving the entire community. Occupational safety and health is not only the human right and concerns of the workers and their families, but also of great significance to the enterprises as well as national economy since productivity and competitiveness depends on keeping the workplace safe. Regrettably, the annual cost of workplace accidents and diseases worldwide has been estimated at five billion dollars.
The writer is Chairman of Institution of Engineers, Pakistan
