APRIL 29 — The announcement by the Minister of Human Resources Steven Sim that the Occupational Safety and Health Amendment Act 2022 (OSHA 2022) will come into effect on June 1 would further increase the level of safety and health at Malaysian workplaces. This has been the long-awaited announcement.
The original Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1994 (OSHA 1994), is the primary law governing occupational safety and health in Malaysia.
The Act was enacted in 1994 and took effect on February 24, 1994. It runs parallel with the Factory and Machinery Acts 1967 (FMA) which was the occupational safety legislation at that time.
Under the FMA, the emphasis was on safety while with OSHA 1994 there was more emphasis on addressing the health hazards in the workplaces. Over the years, OSHA 1994 was supported by regulations, industrial codes of practices and guidelines to further supplement the provisions in the Act.
While the FMA does contain provisions on safety, health, and welfare of employees, these are limited compared to the OSHA 1994. The FMA is also specific on the types of machinery it does and does not regulate.
Since OSHA 1994, the Department of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) has delivered remarkable progress for our nation. Workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities have fallen dramatically. The only exception is fatalities of workers travelling to their workplaces and back. The fatalities are mainly motorcyclists.
However, the Social Security Organization (Socso) also under the Ministry of Human Resources is working with the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros) to address the issue.
Looking to the future, DOSH is committed to further protecting workers. DOSH has incorporated the provisions of OSHA 1994 and FMA into the OSHA 2022. More attention is focused on chemical, ergonomics, and noise.
In addition, to prevent accidents happening in the workplace, it is mandatory that employers conduct risk assessments on work that is to be carried out. Also introduced is the appointment of a trained Occupational Safety and Health Coordinator (OSH-C) for organisations with more than five employees but not legally to employ a safety officer.
OSHA 2022 also incorporates a provision whereby workers have the right to remove themselves from the workplaces if they have reason to believe there is imminent danger of death or suffering of serious bodily injuries.
DOSH has reduced fatal safety hazards and health risks. They have established simple and common-sense standards and enforced the law against those who put workers at risk. Their standards and enforcement actions have saved hundreds of lives and prevented countless injuries and illnesses
Although their task is far from complete, the progress gives DOSH hope and confidence that OSHA 2022 would continue to make a lasting difference in the lives of Malaysian workers, their families, and their communities.
It has been close to 30 years since the introduction of OSHA 1994. There are little excuses for organisations not to have an established safety system in their workplaces to comply with OSHA 2022.
*This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail.
