OSHA long overdue

Indeed, there is no little irony in the fact that this very delay reflects the kind of incompetence that would not be tolerated in the more dangerous workplace of an industrial site.

The Act has already been passed and has only to be proclaimed. But the delay, according to the Government, is the result of shortcomings in the legislation. Inevitably, however, this delay has created the perception that the politicians are trying to protect the business interests they depend on for financing. Yet the Government has not responded to these accusations by the rather obvious method of specifying what aspects of the OSHA Act it is trying to fix.

Meanwhile, the rate of industrial accidents has been growing. With every incident, labour spokesmen have renewed their calls for the Act to be proclaimed. However, the OSHA is not a magic bullet. It is quite possible that the majority of recent industrial accidents are the result of carelessness or incompetence — a part of the general malaise that has been overtaking the society. But it is also clear that certain accidents are the result of negligence and corner-cutting on the part of companies whose owners, for example, apparently shirk at buying safety harnesses for workers.

In bringing about a change in the practices of such advantageous and skinflint businesses, legislation is only the first step. The real key will have to be implementation. Minister Montano, speaking on Monday at a negotiation skills workshop, highlighted one such measure — a hotline employees can call to report potentially dangerous situations at the workplace. If such a hotline exists, we assume that there are also investigators with the expertise to check such reports in a timely fashion. We also assume that checks are in place to ensure that such investigators cannot be easily bribed to overlook transgressions — always a danger with this kind of law.

However, the reality is that industrial accidents can never be completely eliminated. Human error will always occur. What the OSHA will do, hopefully, is provide the push needed for systemic change to occur, so accidents are not the result of a disregard for workers’ lives.

Some trade union leaders have focused on contract labour as a key factor in the recent accidents, but this is mostly self-interested rhetoric.

In the modern workplace, contract work is more likely to become the norm and, with proper safeguards, such an arrangement can benefit employees as well as employers.

But, when it comes to industry, a prime safeguard certainly must be the insistence of any organisation that its sub-contractors meet rigorous safety standards.

However, this is one of the few areas where the market cannot be left to its own devices (although it should be noted that, contrary to popular rhetoric, North American and European multinational companies usually have higher safety standards than local firms). This is why the Government must implement the OSHA as soon as possible. Without such regulations, crowing about becoming a developed nation is just empty noise.