Compliance still a challenge to many organisations
Two in every five orginisation that are inspected by IES (Inspection and Enforcement Services) seems to not be complying with the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
This is after the IES conducted inspections in 2789 workplaces throughout the country starting from April 30, 2020 to May 08, 2020. During the inspections it was found that 1237 organisations were not compliant resulting in the issuance of 1463 notices comprised of Contravention Notices; Improvement Notices and Prohibition Notices.
Of these inspections, 411 were conducted at government and or state owned enterprises where the rate of compliance was at 50 percent
Inspector General, Aggy Moiloa, in a media statement for the Department of Employment and Labour’s Inspection and Enforcement Service (IES), said that two of every five inspected organisations are not complying with the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA).
The Department is concerned that since the introduction of lockdown level 4, more organisations are not complying. The lessons learnt over the last 30 days of the lockdown have not impacted much on those organisations that started their operation on May, 1.
“Given the fact that the virus is spreading substantially, it is of great concern especially at those employers where there are long queues or people congregating. This is especially prevalent at government related workplaces.
“We are shocked that many organisations are still struggling to comply with the OHS Act. It should be every organisation’s habit. No wonder we still have so many workplace accidents. Progressive organisations invest in the wellness of their employees”, said Inspector General, Aggy Moiloa.
The Department is gearing up for more inspections as more organisations are starting to increase their operations with the result that more employees are anticipated to gradually start working again.
