LETTERS: The Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Bill 2021 (Osha Bill) was passed in Parliament on Oct 27 last year.
The bill introduces significant amendments to the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994. One of the amendments places health and safety duties on the organisation, employer and directors.
When these duties are breached, members of the board who have collective and individual responsibilities for health and safety could be liable to penalties.
To ensure a company's safety and health performance, the top management, including directors, must demonstrate not only an interest but also a long-term commitment to protect employees from injuries and illnesses.
Although they are not expected to be directly involved in implementing safety procedures, they can play a significant role in safety performance by establishing the standards and values in the organisation and enforcing safety requirements.
They could start by looking at the health and safety practices and how these practices could be improved.
When top management puts effective strategies in place, they can influence the managers and staff members to make positive changes to attitudes, behaviours and overall performance of the organisation in terms of health and safety.
A key part of leadership is to develop a good relationship with the workforce, one that involves mutual trust and respect.
This will create a good foundation and promote openness and better communication in the organisation.
Leaders at all levels need to understand the health and safety risks in the organisation and pay attention to each of them. This applies to details and efforts they put into identifying the hazard, assessing the risks, implementing controls, supervising and monitoring.
Health and safety are a fundamental part of business. Board members who do not show leadership in this area have failed in their duty as directors.
It will be difficult for an organisation to achieve the highest standards of health and safety management without the active involvement of the directors.
Board-level involvement is an essential part of 21st-century organisational ethics. The attitude towards health and safety is determined by the employer, not the size of the organisation.
WONG SOO KAN
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times