The Guardian: Bangladesh shipbuilder sets benchmark in health and safety standards

Bangladesk's Western Marine Shipyards has seen a 99% reduction
in accidents.

Chittagong shipyard partners with German firm to promote better workplace health and safety practices and reduce accidents.

Shipbuilding is a growth industry for the country, bringing in much-needed foreign currency. Three years ago, conditions at this Chittagong shipyard were very different, with 1,000 injuries a month in a workforce of 3,500. Now, through relatively simple measures, there has been a 99% reduction in accidents.

This has been achieved through a public-private partnership between Western Marine and Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) to promote better health and safety in the workplace. A three-year partnership was the frst of its kind in Bangladesh using private sector infrastructure for the provision of public health services.

The aim was to ensure a fit and healthy workforce, through better access to health services, and the company agreed to build a health clinic.

A worker inspects a factory in Dhaka after a fire killed
eight people last May.

After a welder was electrocuted and died while working without protective equipment, Western Marine set about analysing the risks and hazards works faced - such as eye injuries and damage to hearing from noise. A health and safety policy was drawn up to address the high accident rates, training was provided for managers and workers, and protective clothing and equipment were distributed.

Strict reporting procedures were established, so that every incident or accident was recorded and investigated, and preventive measures implemented. The shipyard also recruited a health and safety adviser to monitor, record and address any significant issues. The impact of these measures was immediate and dramatic.

Health and safety is now embedded in the company's practices. "The first thing is that when you do any job you ensure the safety is assured for all the workers - that's the top priority," says Arifur Rahman Khan, the firm's technical director, "That's how we start our day." In the past three years there have been no fatal accidents.

To read more and view the original article, click here.

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