11.10.09
Cleaning is a Core Activity for All Industries, Says EU-OSHA
With about 3.6 million people employed in cleaning jobs in the EU, this sector is treated grossly and unfairly. The recent European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) initiatives revealed that people engaged in jobs like these are not given the respect and consideration due to them. The body pointed out that the cleaning sector is a core industry, and without its efficient functioning, every business in the economy will face serious setbacks.
The EU-OSHA initiatives were part of the agency’s focus on cleaning sector issues during the European Week for Safety and Health at Work. Two new publications were presented by the organisation on this occasion- “Preventing Harm to Cleaning Workers” and “Cleaning Workers and Occupational Safety and Health”. These publications highlight the problems faced by cleaners such as exposure to harmful refuse, poor and unsanitary work conditions, extended timings of work and other such issues that plague the industry.
The publication “Preventing Harm to Cleaning Workers” appraises the various methods taken at company, national and European level to improve the working conditions of the cleaners. The publication also puts forward various ways to enhance the welfare of cleaning industry workers. Some of these measures include the shift in work hours from night to day to enable workers to have a social life and the use of better protective gear while undertaking cleaning tasks.
A video showing a cleaner suffering from musculoskeletal disorders was also released to portray the risks involved in cleaning jobs and ways to prevent and limit such disorders.
EU-OSHA stressed on the critical contribution of such workers to the growth of business and economy by saying that businesses like food and pharma could lose their licenses but for the good work done by cleaners.
The Health and Safety Policy is a key factor of any organisations health and safety management system; Workplace Law’s health and safety policy documentation can assist organisations in implementing their own policies to comply with relevant legislation and to help define key health and safety roles and responsibilities of staff in the workplace.
