OHS Chat

I trust that you are all well and sober. I have to ask this question in view of the rapidly approaching ‘Silly Season’ and the lack of sobriety that invariably accompanies this time of the year. Even the Sunday Times of 17 October 2004 in an article entitled ‘Yule be sorry if you overdo the office party’ devoted some space to caution employees against making fools of themselves over this period. Apparently alcohol consumption doubles while productivity slumps. I naturally focus on the (liver) unhealthy and unsafe angle. We have covered this before in other newsletters so I won’t bore you or pontificate anymore. There does, however, seem to be an increase in work related accidents lately and, when I made a remark to this effect to my driver en route to Oranjemund in Namibia last week, he described it as ‘Oestyd’!

The media coverage surrounding the explosion at the SASOL plant in Secunda has continued unabated with ETV’s Debra Patta on Third Degree recently jumping in. She interviewed a certain individual from a certain NGO who said some very unflattering things about everyone. Even DoL didn’t escape his criticism. I believe that the Formal Inquiry into that incident starts on 27 October and is scheduled for 3 days.

You will recall that I knocked myself out (with glee) in a previous newsletter when the Director-general of the Department of Justice was charged for failing to adhere to a Prohibition Notice that had been served by DoL on the (unhealthy) Pretoria magistrates courts. I even asked you to vote whether, if convicted of an offence, he should pass ‘Go’ and go straight to jail. You all voted overwhelmingly YES! Well. Sorry to burst your collective penal bubbles but the case has been withdrawn with no reasons publicly furnished. Click here for more.

I’m also proud to reveal that I have written an article for ‘National Safety and Occupational Hygiene’ magazine entitled ‘ Explaining OHS Investigative Procedures’. It is the Official journal of the Institute of Safety Management and I’m happy to be associated with them. I’m also glad that there is an article on health and safety awareness at TRANS HEX since the latter has been very hospitable to me and, courtesy of them last week, I saw the Northern Cape and even set foot in Namibia – albeit in transit.

I also have it on authority that the ‘Outsourced’ (private sector) Investigative arm of DoL has made huge inroads into the backlogs. I may be speaking out of turn but I believe that, in their area of jurisdiction, they have halved the more than 900 outstanding uninvestigated fatal workplace incidents. I’m also told that the new OHS Act will bind DoL to finalise matters within a certain period. I think it may be 50 days after an incident has occurred.

My thanks to SUIDWES LANDBOU for coming aboard as a Subscriber. I remember fondly driving to Leeudoringstad some years ago and also recall that my Afrikaans my so effens in die steek gelaat het when I presented a seminar there! Other employers that I need to single out for giving me work lately are ENGEN, SAA TECHNICAL, CAPE GATE, TRANS HEX, ETHEKWINI MUNICIPALITY, ESKOM and AFROX (Witbank). Also to all those persons who will be attending my swansong workshops which kick off on 23 November in Durban and end on 26 November in Sandton. There are still seats available and even 20% discount per delegate for On-Line Registration. Click here for more.

For more workshop click here.

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Your Devil’s Advocate

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