Occupational Safety and Health
The Occupational Safety Officers of the Labour Department promote and protect the health and safety of employees in the industrial and non-industrial sectors. To reduce accidents and guard against ill-health, efforts are focused on legislative control, safety training, education and promotion. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance and the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance, 31 sets of regulations have been made to cover various aspects of hazardous activities in factories, building and engineering construction sites, restaurants, catering establishments, commercial premises and other workplaces. In As of 2001, 126,470 inspections and 12,500 accident investigations were conducted. A total of 2 660 prosecutions were taken out with fines totalling $32.3 million. In 2001, 597 training courses on safety legislation for 6,391 people and 218 tailor-made briefing sessions for 6,874 employees in private and public sector organisations were given. Safety and health publications were distributed to members of the public through various outlets and 241 publication stands placed in major shopping centres, housing estates, clinics, transport stations, public utility service counters and government offices. The Occupational Safety Charter, setting out the rights of employees to enjoy a safe working environment and the employers’ obligations to reduce the risk of accidents, remains a major promotion programme and as at the end of 2001, 558 organisations, including employer and employee bodies, have subscribed voluntarily to the charter. Five major publicity campaigns were launched in 2001, including a safety award scheme to promote safety in the catering industry, a programme to promote a greater awareness of occupational safety and health among small and medium enterprises, a safety award scheme to promote safety in the construction industry, a campaign to promote the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Safety Management) Regulation and the Factories and Industrial Undertakings (Loadshifting Machinery) Regulation, and production of two television Announcement in Public Interests and four radio Announcement in Public Interests.
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