Changes needed to thwart occupational hazards

Ramani KANGARAARACHCHI

The changes in the labour process call for radical changes in occupational health prevention.

National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Director General Dr Hemantha Wickramatilake said the combination of old and new occupational hazards call for an integrated preventive approach which needs to redefine occupational health policies and services.

Speaking on ‘Changing economies and occupational safety and health at a symposium to commemorate World Day for Safety and Health at Work at Galadari Hotel on Tuesday, Dr Wickramatilake said the application of new technologies in computing are taking place in a large array of workplaces and new forms of work organizations are emerging.

In this new work environment, new companies, new types of workers and new risk factors are also powerfully emerging” he said.

In Sri Lanka more investment is expected. Significant improvement in tourist and aviation industries and industry are happening. However, the basic principles remain the same.

The reality is that in Sri Lanka authorities even do not know how many are affected by accidents due to lack of a proper survey system and other resources.

He pointed out essential steps to face this challenge are the need to search for appropriate knowledge of occupational health needs ,implementation of policy strategies and interventions, evaluation of processes and outcome to assess the efficiency of our interventions.

Employer’s Federation of Colombo (EFC) Director General Ravi Peiris said the symposium was based on the theme of “Emerging risks and new patterns of Prevention in a changing world of work” because there is a global concern about previously unknown risks caused by new technologies, new work processes and organizational change.