Min. Hamilton reiterates importance of building sustainable partnerships to address safety

Seventeen employees of Global EDGE who are members of the Ministry of Labour’s Joint Workplace Safety and Health Committee were on Tuesday presented with Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) certificates.

This follows their completion of a three-day Joint Workplace Safety training hosted by the ministry’s OSH department in collaboration with the National Insurance Scheme (NIS).

During the certification ceremony at the ministry’s head office on Brickdam, Minister, Joseph Hamilton stressed the need for persons to be trained in OSH to avoid fatalities and injuries.

“The issue of safety and health in Guyana is not an employer, employee problem, it’s a national problem, it’s a cultural problem. So, the changes are not for the workplace only, the change is for the nation,” Minister Hamilton stated.

He also noted the labour ministry’s responsibility to build sustainable partnerships with members of the private sector as they tackle the issue of safety.

“So, when I talk about safety and health, I am talking in all workplaces, fields, factories, offices. Wherever people work they must be safe. They must be able to go back to their families every day when they leave the work site,” the minister posited.

The company was also presented with a one-year OSH certificate.

OSH consultant Gweneth King said the certificate is renewable subject to the maintenance of the company’s joint workplace safety and health committee.

“A well-functioning joint safety and health committee in a workplace is necessary for the promotion of a joint responsibility system at work. It is very important to the work of the Ministry of Labour since it will contribute to our mandate of improving working conditions and environment in Guyana,” she stated.

Meanwhile, Country Manager of Global E.D.G.E, Abdool Azis described the training as transformative as he commended the OSH department for its input.

“It demonstrates clearly the government’s commitment to ensuring it is developed and apprised of the key role they play in the dynamic and ever-changing environment known as the workplace,” Azis noted.