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The International Labour Organisation (ILO) named April 28 the "World Day for Safety and Health at Work" to raise the international community's concern over occupational safety and health. Since 2009, Legislative Councillors from the labour sector, Labour Advisory Board employee representatives, the Occupational Safety and Health Council and the Labour Department launched the Outstanding Employees in Occupational Safety and Health Award Scheme to support the "World Day for Safety and Health at Work". The Award Scheme aims to enhance the occupational safety and health awareness of various sectors of the society, show respect to workers in different industries and honour workers who have outstanding performance in promoting safety culture in Hong Kong.
The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, said this evening (April 28) at the presentation ceremony of the third Outstanding Employees in Occupational Safety and Health Award Scheme that with the concerted efforts of the employers, employees, stakeholders and the Government in promoting the occupational safety and health culture, Hong Kong's occupational safety and health performance continues to improve over the years. He noted that the number of work injuries had fallen continuously from 53 719 in 2001 to 41 907 in 2010, representing a drop of 22% while the accident rate per thousand employees also recorded a decrease of 28.2% from 21.6 to 15.5.
The number of industrial accidents saw a notable drop of 50% from 28 518 in 2001 to 14 015 in 2010. The accident rate per thousand workers also went down by 44.2% from 44.6 to 24.9. The improvement made by the construction industry has been most notable. The number of accidents plunged from 9 206 in 2001 to 2 884 in 2010, down a hefty 68.7% while the accident rate per thousand workers also fell sharply from 114.6 to 52.1.
"Manpower is not only the cornerstone of Hong Kong's economic success but also our most valuable asset. Every single work injury not only cause damage to the employee, the employer and society as a whole will also have a price to pay," Mr Cheung said.
In 2010, the Labour Department handled 41 270 cases of reported sick leave for more than three days. These cases amounted to a loss of 1 780 000 work days with more than $0.95 billion paid as sick leave compensation. The average compensation paid for each case was about $23,000 and involved a loss of 43 working days for each employee.
"The year ahead also poses austere challenges to occupational safety and health especially in the construction industry. Firstly, many major infrastructure projects have commenced and there will be other construction projects in the coming years. Secondly, with the ageing of buildings in Hong Kong the need for renovation and maintenance works will also increase," Mr Cheung said.
Hence, Mr Cheung urged employers to implement risk management. Employees should not cut corners in carrying out their duties and must adopt suitable safety measures.
One of the winners of the third Hong Kong Outstanding Employees in Occupational Safety and Health Award Scheme was a scaffolding worker. In mid-April this year while he was dismantling a truss-out scaffold at the external wall of a building in Chai Wan, he slipped and fell from the 17/F. Fortunately, he had put on a safety harness which saved his life during his fall and maintained an integral and happy family. In fact, renovation and maintenance works often involve work at height. Workers have to use suitable fall protection device. To prevent accidents and to avoid injury and fatality, employers should also supervise and monitor their workers to take appropriate safety measures when they are working at height.
Ends/Thursday, April 28, 2011
Issued at HKT 20:54
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