A COPY OF MY APPEAL LETTER TO ILO

My name is Ehi Iden, I am the Chief Executive Officer of Occupational Health and Safety Managers Ltd, a co-founder of Centre for Preventive Health and Advocacy, an NGO whose main focus is on Preventive Health and Occupational Safety.

In Occupational Health and Safety Managers, we have been involved in a wide variety of capacity building and development programs in Nigeria where we have been able to train a good number of people in Occupational Health and Safety. This is very core in our operational focus and it is a continuous program for us in our entire existence as an organization.

In as much as we train people to be able to primarily practice Occupational Health and Safety and also know how to draw and formulate policies in the area of safety in their workplaces, we are still bedeviled with a frustrating problem of not having enabling laws to base our practice or having a constitutional reference to enforce safety principles in workplace. The absence of such enabling laws have made organizations in Nigeria to expose workers to high risk levels to the extent that workers get maimed and even die on a daily basis in Nigeria in such a careless abandoned nature. There are no injuries reports, no statistics and the organizations are not even willing to draw up corporate safety policies because there has not been any law in Nigeria that has placed a responsibility on them to do so. The factory act and the workmen’s compensation act is an empty document in Nigeria and cannot secure the safety of Nigerian workers in their workplaces, we have visited some of organization to solicit for opportunities to allow us train their employees in Occupational Health and Safety and they bluntly tell us they do not need it. The few companies we have in Nigeria who recognize Occupational Health and Safety are the big multinationals who are running the policies constituted in their parent country of origin. The Asian companies have invaded Nigerian economy and they are killing Nigerians in their multiplied numbers through workplace accidents and it is becoming a situation where we are thinking we would have no future the way the Nigerian workplaces are being exposed to hazards of all kinds.

I will at this point give kudos to the modern day thinking Governor of Lagos State who summoned courage to call for a stakeholders conference on workplace safety in Lagos State sometime ago and he publicly declared the intentions of Lagos State Government to set up Lagos State Safety Commission which we have waited for to no avail but that move was a respite to most of us. I would not be shocked if we discover that the delay in getting this proposed safety commission set up is hinged on the absence of local enabling laws to operate the said commission.

I am most dismayed with the fact that Nigeria was among member countries that signed the Occupational Health and Safety Law in the Geneva convention of 1981 and why it is taking so long for this same law to be domesticated in to our local laws, we are yet to know. What help can the ILO render inthis direction to enable us secure the future of our dear country by influencing the Nigerian Government to sign the Geneva  law in to our local law content?

A bill on Occupational Health and Safety was initiated almost 4 years ago at the floor of the Senate by Senator Chris Anyanwu and nobody has talked about that bill and it is not even given attention. What do we do? Nigeria is our country, we can keep rolling out graduates from Universities only to get killed and maimed in their workplaces due to the absence of enabling laws to provide safety and security for workers in workplaces. Parents lose their children on daily basis to this ill situation, most women enter early widowhood because of the loss of their husbands to workplace accident which ultimately leaves the children fatherless to face harsh life’s situation that has directly or indirectly contributed to the turnover of criminality and other socio vices in our Nation.

This is an appeal to International Labour Organisation, as an arm of United Nations to please offer every help necessary to Nigeria in ensuring Occupational Health and Safety Law is in place. Our heart bleeds, we do not even know how we got here, we need you to help us out of this lawlessness in workplaces and put us on a right track to enable us go on that Nigeria may have hope and a future. The future of this Nation lies in the youth who die daily in their workplaces due to high exposure to hazards without necessary controls.

I strongly believe you will act on this cry for help.

Ehi Iden

THE CONTENT OF NIGERIAN OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY BILL

The Bill to enact a law that would take care of the health and safety of industrial workers passed through second reading on the floor of the Senate on 25th February, 2009.

The bill sponsored by Senator Chris Anyanwu which was committed to the senate committees on Labour, Health seeks amongst other things to ensure that employers of labour are properly protected.

 The highlights of the Bill are as follow:

• To make further provisions for securing the safety, health and welfare of persons at work;

• To make provisions for protecting others against risks to safety or health in connection with the activities of persons at work;

• To establish the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health to create a general framework for the improvement of working conditions and the working environment;

• To prevent accidents and departures from health arising out of or in the course of work;

• To ensure the provision of occupational safety and health services to workers in all sectors of economic activity.

The bill is also to establish the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health Hazards and for related issues with the following functions:

• To ensure employee safety and health in Nigeria by working with employers and employees to create better working environments;

• To act as a regulatory agency by issuing safety and health standards that is enforceable under Nigerian safety law.

OUR QUESTIONS ARE:

1. Do you think the content of this bill is rich enough to guaranty both the safety and health of the Nigerian worker and security for the employer?
2. What are those crucial contents you feel ought to have been included bot no there presently?

Send us a mail at info@ohsm.com.ng

DIABETES DECLARATION AND STRATEGY FOR AFRICA: A CALL TO ACTION

Diabetes Declaration and Strategy for Africa: A call to action

DOWNSIDE OF SITTING ON OUR BACKSIDES

Risks of sitting too long

 

Taking the stairs instead of the elevator, trips to the gym, lunch hour walks - the value of exercise is understood by both individuals and organizations. What may not be as well known are the health risks of sitting for long periods at a time - regardless of how much you exercise.

 

How working in a sitting position can affect your health

 

Those who must spend long periods in a seated position on the job such as taxi drivers, call centre professionals and office workers, are at risk for injury and a variety of adverse health effects.

The most common injuries occur in the muscles, bones, tendons and ligaments, affecting the neck and lower back regions. Prolonged sitting:

• Reduces body movement making muscles more likely to pull, cramp or strain when stretched suddenly  
• Causes fatigue in the back and neck muscles by slowing the blood supply and puts high tension on the spine, especially in the low back or neck  
• Causes a steady compression on the spinal discs that hinders their nutrition and can contribute to their premature degeneration.

Sedentary employees may also face a gradual deterioration in health if they do not exercise or do not lead an otherwise physically active life. The most common health problems that these employees experience are disorders in blood circulation and injuries affecting their ability to move. Deep Veinous Thrombosis (DVT), where a clot forms in a large vein after prolonged sitting, sometimes called "Traveller's Thrombosis" because it is sometimes observed after a long flight, is also a risk.

 

Employees, who for years spend most of their working time seated, may experience other, less specific adverse health effects. Decreased fitness, reduced heart and lung efficiency, and digestive problems are common. Recent research has identified too much sitting as an important part of the physical activity and health equation, and suggests we should focus on the harm caused by daily inactivity such as prolonged sitting.

 

Data collected in a 1990's Australian study on the prevalence of diabetes and its risk factors was further analysed by a team led by associate professor David Dunstan to determine whether people's television viewing time was related to their metabolic health. Results showed that people who watched television for long periods of time (more than four hours a day), were at risk of:

• Higher blood levels of sugar and fats 
• Larger waistlines, and  
• Higher risk of metabolic syndrome  
• Regardless of how much moderate to vigorous exercise they had.  

In addition, people who interrupted their sitting time more often just by standing or with light activities such as housework, shopping, and moving about the office had healthier blood sugar and fat levels, and smaller waistlines than those whose sitting time was not broken up.

 

 What does this mean for workers?

 

Injuries resulting from sitting for long periods are a serious occupational health and safety problem and are expected to become more common with the continuing trend toward work in a sitting position. An important step is to recognize that prolonged sitting can be a health risk, and that efforts must be made to design jobs that help people reduce and break up their sitting time.

 

 How can you design a job that requires prolonged sitting?

 

The main objective of a job design for a seated employee is to reduce the amount of time the person spends "just" sitting. Frequent changes in the sitting position are not enough to protect against blood pooling in the legs or to prevent other injuries.

  

Five minutes of a more vigorous activity, such as walking for every 40 to 50 minutes of sitting, can provide protection. These breaks are also beneficial because they give the heart, lungs and muscles some exercise to help counterbalance the effects of sitting for prolonged periods in a relatively fixed position. Where practical, jobs should incorporate "activity breaks" such as work-related tasks away from the desk or simple exercises which employees can carry out at the workstation or worksite.

 

 Another important aspect of job design is consulting with and getting feedback from employees. No matter how good the workplace and the job designs, there are always aspects of the job that can and must be tailored to the individual.

 

The bottom line: stand up, move around and get off your backside as frequently as you possibly can. But understand that physical activity is just one part of the equation for preventing the harmful effects of prolonged sitting. Other important factors include chair selection, workstation design and training.

 

 

Courtesy: CCOSH

 

 

 

WHAT ARE WORKPLACE MSD AND FIRE

Workplace pains and strains are also known as musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI), Cumulative Trauma Disorder (CTD) and Repetitive Motion Injury (RMI). These types of injuries affect the muscles, tendons, ligaments and nerves.
MSDs develop as a result of the effects of repetitive, forceful or awkward movements on bones, joints, ligaments and other soft tissues. Workers may experience symptoms such as discomfort, pain, numbness, tingling, weakness and restricted movements.
MSD is not a medical diagnosis; it is an umbrella term for a group of injuries. Some of these injuries include:

• Back Pain (low back strain, etc)

• Muscle Strain

• Tendonitis

• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)

• Rotator Cuff Syndrome

• Tennis Elbow (epicondylitis)

• Shoulder Pain (shoulder myalgia)

Workers are more likely to suffer an MSD if they perform jobs with MSD risk factors that include repetitive movements, forceful efforts, and fixed or awkward postures.

Why should you be concerned about workplace pains and strains?

Workplace pains and strains can be serious and disabling for workers, causing pain and suffering ranging from discomfort to severe disability. The consequences are far reaching and can affect every aspect of a worker's life.

Workplace pains and strains can be prevented!

There is a strong link between exposure to the work-related risk factors for MSD and the development of these disorders.
These injuries can be prevented! Taking appropriate steps to eliminate, or reduce the exposure to the work-related risk factors, will minimize the risk of MSDs in the workplace.
MSD prevention can be simple and inexpensive. Often making straight-forward and basic changes can reduce MSD risks significantly.

Prevention is good business

As with almost all health and safety issues it is less expensive to prevent an injury than it is to make changes and corrections after an injury has occurred. Don’t wait for an MSD to happen. Taking proactive steps now to reduce your workers’ exposure to MSD risk factors will pay off in the future.

Having a program to prevent MSDs has been shown to have many positive outcomes:

• Healthy workers, who are free from discomfort, are more efficient

• Reduced WSIB lost-time injury claims and the associated direct and indirect costs

• Improved ability to bring workers back to work if they have been injured

• Less strenuous and more straight-forward job tasks makes it easier to train and place workers

• Improved ability to retain experienced, knowledgeable and skilled workers

• Improved employee satisfaction, morale and well-being

• Reduced administrative costs related to claims management and investigations

• Increased quality, productivity and profits

Preventive steps for employers

Regardless of whether or not workers have reported MSD symptoms, or whether or not they have filed WSIB claims, MSD prevention needs to be a key part of a workplace health and safety program. MSD risk factors should be handled like any other workplace hazard. Employers should:

• Advise and train workers about the MSD risk factors in their job and in the workplace

• Encourage workers to participate in the health and safety program through early reporting of MSD symptoms or concerns

• Identify and assess job related MSD risk factors

• Put in place controls to reduce workers’ exposure to MSD risk factors

• Follow-up to make sure preventive measures are working

Workplace pains and strains and the law

The Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) requires employers to ensure that workers are aware of the hazards associated with the workers’ job and workplace, and that controls are implemented to reduce the risk of injury from these hazards. MSD risk factors in the workplace must be treated the same as any other workplace hazard.

Emergencies : Fire

When there’s a fire inside your building, you need to get out immediately! Since smoke from a fire can make it difficult to see, it’s important to know the best way to exit the building. How do you know this? You should have a plan before a fire even happens. Here’s how to be prepared before a fire:

• Have a plan and practice it. This plan should include fire drills. A fire drill can help you practice leaving your building quickly and safely. Don’t forget to talk about different ways you can get out. Learn more about having a disaster plan.

During a fire, you should do the following:

• Use a fire extinguisher to put out small fires. You can also use water if the fire is not electrical or chemical. Do NOT try to put out a fire that you can’t control.

• If there’s a fire that is too big to put out, leave the building immediately. You might not have much time before the fire spreads, so don’t even stop to call 911. Once you’re outside and safe, you can use a cell phone or a neighbor’s phone to call.

• If your clothes catch fire, do NOT run. This could make the fire spread more quickly. Instead, stop, drop, and roll! In other words, stop, drop to the ground, cover your face with your hands, and roll back and forth until the fire is put out.

• If there is smoke in your house, cover your nose and mouth with a small cloth and stay low to the ground as you’re leaving. Smoke is very dangerous to breathe and difficult to see through. Since smoke naturally rises, you should crawl on your hands and knees to exit the building.