SMB in Region 6, Labor Laws Compliant Establishment

The DOLE Family in Western Visayas once again, participated in the witnessing of the unveiling ceremony of another branch of SMB Brewery, Inc. wherein SMB Panay Provinces Beer Region & Western Visayas Metro Beer Region declared their establishment as a Labor Laws Compliant Establishment.

Addressing Safety with TQM Const. Corp.

 The Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC), in collaboration with the Western Visayas Occupational Safety and Health Network, Inc. (WVOSHNET), conducted the (1) day appreciation course on occupational safety and health (OSH) to 35-workers of TQM Construction Corporation last June 18, 2016, at the Biscocho Haus, Jaro, Iloilo City ;

The workers present were the project engineers, safety officer, accounting and management staff, foremen, mason, painters, janitors, mechanics, electricians, plumbers, among others;

Mr. Melveen Melocoton, Admin Officer, facilitated the flow of the activity and discussed topics on the situation of OSH globally and locally, and overviews on industrial hygiene and occupational health;

The participants mostly expected that they would learn the basics on OSH and be updated on new trends and issues regarding the matter;

Engr. Wesley Welfredo Dulla, DOLE-accredited OSH Practitioner and Board of Director of the WVOSHNET, discussed and facilitated topics on occupational safety. Specifically, electrical safety, fall protection & ladder safety, excavation safety, and confined space. Such topics were requested by the company, themselves;

After the topics, the participants had a workshop on just thinking about their workplaces where they wrote concerns on occupational safety, health and environment in their respective areas, their recommendations, the time frame of its implementation, and responsible people for assistance. The outputs were then submitted to the safety officer for evaluation of management;

Mr. Alvin Ita-as, son of the owner of TQM Construction Corporation, received IEC materials and the OSHS yellow book from the OSHC. He thanked the facilitators and employees for the successful conduct of the activity. He said that more collaborative activities will be expected soon to further expand the commitment of the company on OSH.

Iwas Aksidente Patrol (IwAP) Mo!

The DOLE-RO6 invited partner agencies, intermediaries, and advocates to discuss the development of the DOLE-RO6 initiated, “Iwas Aksidente Patrol Mo,” project and its possible adoption.

Partners present were representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC), Employees Compensation Commission (ECC), Western Visayas Occupational Safety and Health Network, Inc. (WVOSHNET, Inc.), Safety Organization of Negros Occidental, Inc. (SONO, Inc.), Contractors Network of Negros Occidental, Inc. (CONNO, Inc.), and Philippine College of Occupational Medicine (PCOM).

Ponciano M. Ligutom, Regional Director of DOLE-RO6, emphasized the role of the department as facilitators in the implementation of the various programs, projects and activities on occupational safety and health. “We believe that if we work together, we can make a push for safety and health. That is the reality of public-private partnership/convergence. We need to be the vision keepers,” he added.

Dr. Florentino Alerta II, PCOM representative, stressed his sentiments on the importance of making management aware of the laws and policies on OSH especially on the qualifications and recruitment of OSH personnel. He also verbalized the issues on documentation and reporting wherein some companies are not compliant or are afraid to do so especially times of severe accidents.

Engr. Maximo Pareja, President of WVOSHNET, suggested that an incident reporting chart or the “IWAP Mo” signage be posted in on-going construction sites as requirement;

Mr. Stephene Barredo, representative of ECC, presented the “Work Hazard and Accident Report System."

IwAP mo!, is a concept of the DOLE Regional Office 6 that calls on workers and ordinary citizens to actively support in the advocacy and promotion of safety and health in hazardous workplaces in the region. It was conceptualized and implemented due to low ratio of Labor Laws Compliance Officers (LLCOs) versus the increasing number of establishments, minimal opportunity for OSH violations committed in plain view of LLCOs, and new construction sites and other hazardous workplaces mushrooming in the region without the knowledge of the DOLE, thus are not included in the roster of establishments subject to the visits of the LLCOs.

Engaging Company Nurses on Safety and Compensation

A total of (35) company nurses from various organizations attended the (1) day seminar entitled, “Seminar in Occupational Safety & Health and Employees Compensation for Company Nurses” this June 3, 2016, at the Conference Room, DOLE-Region 6, Swan Rose Building, Commission Civil, Jaro, Iloilo City. The activity was organized by the Employees Compensation Commission (ECC) in collaboration with the Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC) and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Regional Office 6.

On behalf of the Regional Director, Ma. Agnes N. Capigon, Technical Support Services Division (TSSD) Chief of DOLE-RO6, welcomed the participants. She expressed that each of us, nurse or not, should be active advocates of safety and health. Where we work, it is our social responsibility to help each other in the implementation of OSH.

Topics facilitated were the following

• Prevention (Unsafe/Unhealthy Acts & Conditions in the Workplace)
• Compensation (Employers’ Responsibilities: Records, Reports, and Penal Provisions
• Rehabilitation (Katulong at Gabay sa Manggagawang may Kapansanan)
• Rule 1960: Occupational Health Services
• Good housekeeping (5S)

Mr. Melveen Melocoton, administrative officer of OSHC-REU6, introduced the OSHC, its mandate, programs, and services. Also, he discussed the basics on accident causation and facilitated a workshop on the identification and enumeration of unsafe/unhealthy acts and conditions in the workplace. In addition, he also discussed the standards on general occupational health services where he emphasized the qualifications of an occupational health nurse and his duties and responsibilities in the workplace. Lastly, the participants familiarized themselves on the annual medical report template.

Mr. Stephene Barredo, Information Officer of ECC-REU6, introduced the ECC, its mandate, programs, and services. Also, he explained the provisions of the employees compensation program and its processes.

Atty. Ma. Ailyne Valaquio, Regional Tripartite Wage and Productivity Board (RTWPB)-6 representative, discussed the fundamentals of good housekeeping and the 5S approach.

The (1) day seminar, in collaboration with DOLE, OSHC, and ECC, was the first of its kind in the region that was customized for occupational health nurses for them to be capacitated with the basic knowledge on the ECP’s prevention, compensation and rehabilitation components, with focus on the employer’s responsibilities, occupational health services, and legislations.