Dubai: Nearly 55 per cent of the federal government’s expenditure on treatment of non-communicable diseases is spent on workers’ illnesses and diseases and it results in an annual 44 per cent productivity loss, a top official of the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHP) said on Tuesday.
Marking the World Occupational Safety Day at a workshop organised by the ministry, Dr Ameen Hussain Al Amiri, assistant undersecretary for public policy and licensing at the ministry, in his keynote address, said: “We are committed to maintaining a high level of workers’ health and occupational safety standards and want to follow the global best practices [in occupational safety and health] for our work force.”
The one-day workshop focused on different aspects of this field and worked on ways to make it sustainable.
Elaborating on the aspects of occupational safety, Dr Al Amiri said a new health law will shortly be coming into effect. Article 22 of the new federal health law provides comprehensive occupational safety and health standards that will cover preventive, treatment and rehabilitative aspects of workers’ health. “[When the law comes into effect], it will include the five aspects of health safety that we think are important.” Dr Al Amiri said. The five factors are:
1. External or physical factors such as high temperature, humidity and so on for which a law exists to provide respite during the midday hours for workers.
2. Chemical factors such as dealing with hazardous chemicals or gases.
3. Biological factors: Possible illnesses arising out of exposure to viruses, bacteria, parasites, for which there is pre-screening and annual health screening.
4. Psychological and social factors: These include the mental health factors such as stress at the workplace, loneliness, social interactions or lack of it that may give rise to any mental health issues.
5: Mechanical factors: These include the actual conditions in which the worker lives such as the level of cleanliness and hygiene of the building, the safety procedures being followed at the residence and workplace.
Dr Al Amiri reiterated that all these factors will be incorporated to provide a comprehensive occupational health and safety law.
Dr Aisha Al Suwaidi, director-general of the Federal National Human Resources Authority (FAHR), said the government was committed to creating new benchmarks in occupational health and safety at the workplace. “We have prepared composite guidelines for occupational health and safety at the workplace. However, we want different kinds of workplaces to develop their own guidelines based on the factors that could cover all safety aspects specific to their environment. We want all workplaces to have zero hazards.”
Dr Al Suwaidi said that the FAHR had a regular dashboard on its online Federal Human Resources web portal Bayanati. “We collect data of all kinds of occupational hazards, incidences and accidents at the workplace on this portal and are also in the process of preparing a detailed well-being policy for the worker at the workplace,” she added.
