Mr. Melveen, officer-in-charge, was invited as the resource person during the conduct of the DENR-Environmental Management Bureau's 2-day seminar and workshop on occupational safety and health (OSH) for the public sector via teleconference last Aug. 19-20, 2020. The activity was attended by the various heads and representatives of the office. It was designed for the participants to be familiarized on the OSH Standards for the Public Sector and to assist them in adopting the guidelines in their office pursuance to the CSC-DOH-DOLE Joint Memo Circular No. 1 series of 2020.
According to the join memo circular, the OSH Standards shall apply to all officials and employees in the NGAs, SUCs, LGUs; and GOCCs whether permanent, temporary, and/or casual status. Job orders, contract of services, institutional and individual contractors are also covered. The Guidelines on Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Public Sector is aimed at protecting all government employees from the dangers of injury, sickness or death in the workplace through the adoption of safe and healthy working conditions to ensure the preservation of human lives and resources and prevent loss/damage of properties. This shall also guide the government agencies in the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of Occupational Safety and Health for government employees.
During the activity, the participants identified issues in the workplace such as:
- Health risks of the office's skeletal workforce especially the front liners in conducting monitoring and enforcement activities;
- Even with the implementation of our COVID Crisis Management Plan, it is still beyond the office's control regarding those going inside the office and those that workers meet along the way;
- OSH-related risks during the conduct of water sampling, monitoring and other investigation for environmental complaints;
- Concerns on employee health and wellness program and office space, among others.
As a result, the participants were coached on the development of their agency’s OSH program and OSH committee that will serve as the policy making body on matters pertaining to safety and health. They were provided with the basic structure and duties and responsibilities of each member in the committee for their guidance. A detailed discussion was done on the vital elements in safeguarding reasonable working conditions as enumerated by the guidelines, as follows:
- Workplace
- Emergency preparedness
- Occupational safety and health program
- Support facilities
- Working hours, break and leave privileges
- Work environment
After the entire activity, Mr. Melocoton provided the participants with an organizational plan on what activities to be done to realign their current safety, health and environment programs, and stimulate the development of a comprehensive OSH program that will complement the guidelines in the OSH Standards for the public sector. //MM
