Labour Corner…
I TURN my attention now to other specific areas regarding safety and health.
Safety of buildings, ways, machinery and plant Article 40 of the Act speaks to the question of safety of buildings, ways, machinery and plant.
Where the Authority is satisfied that any building, or part of a building, or any part of the ways, machinery or plant in an industrial establishment is in such a condition as to be likely to cause risk of bodily injury to, or to endanger the safety of, persons employed in connection with the industrial establishment or any class of such persons, the Authority may serve on the occupier of the industrial establishment a notice in writing, requiring him, before a date to be specified in the notice, to do the following:
(i) Furnish such drawings, specifications and other particulars as may be necessary to determine whether such building or part of the building, or such part of the ways, machinery or plant can be used without risk of bodily injury or danger to safety;
(ii) carry out such tests as may be necessary to determine the strength or quality of any specified parts of the building, ways, machinery or plant, and to inform the Authority of the results of such tests.
The Authority may choose to serve the occupier of the industrial establishment a notice in writing, specifying the measures which should be adopted to remove the risk of bodily injury and the danger to safety, and require such measures to be carried out before a date to be specified in the notice.
Where the Authority is satisfied that the use of any building or part of a building, or any part of the ways, machinery or plant, in an industrial establishment involves imminent risk of bodily injury to, or imminent danger to the safety of, persons employed in connection with the industrial establishment or any class of such persons, the Authority may serve on the occupier of the industrial establishment a notice in writing prohibiting such use until the building or part of the building, or part of the ways, machinery or plant, as the case may be, has been repaired or altered in such a manner to remove imminent risk, or imminent danger.
Prohibition of employment of children in factories
The Act prohibits children from being employed in factories, and clearly sets out the following:
41. (1):     No child shall be employed in any factory, or in the business of a factory outside the factory, or in any business trade or process ancillary to the business of the factory.
41. (2): Where it appears to the Authority that the presence in any factory, or part of the factory, of children who cannot lawfully be employed therein may be dangerous to them or injurious to their health, the Authority may serve on the occupier of the factory a notice in writing requiring him to prohibit and to prevent the admission of such children to the factory, or part of the factory; as the case may be.

Construction and sale of new machinery
42. (1) of the Act states: In the case of any machine in an industrial establishment being a machine intended to be driven by mechanical power:
(a) Every set-screw, bolt or key on any revolving shaft, spindle, wheel or pinion shall be so sunk, encased or otherwise effectively guarded by situation and design as to prevent danger;
(b) all spur and other toothed or friction gearing, which does not require frequent adjustment while in motion, shall be completely encased unless it is so situated, or is of such design, as to be as safe as it would be if completely encased.
Article 42 goes on to say at (2): Any person who sells, or lets on hire or as agent of the seller or hirer causes or procures to be sold or let on hire for use in an industrial establishment in Guyana any machine intended to be driven by mechanical power which does not comply with the requirements of this section shall be guilty of an offence.
42. (3):     The Minister may make regulations extending Subsection (2) to machinery or plant which does not comply with such requirements of this Act as may be specified in the regulations, and any regulations made under this subsection may relate to machinery or plant in a specified process.

Provisions as to sanitary or other equipment
In every part of an industrial establishment in which workers are employed, there should be suitable and sufficient means of ventilation provided and maintained.  Also, suitable and sufficient means of lighting should be provided and every part of the industrial establishment should be kept suitably and sufficiently lighted.  Such requirements are set out in Article 43 (1) of the OSH Act.
The Act goes on to say as follows:
43. (2): In every industrial establishment, there shall be provided and maintained at suitable points, conveniently accessible to all workers, an adequate supply of wholesome potable water, and vessels containing the water shall be clearly marked with the words ‘DRINKING WATER’.
43. (3): Where workers take any meals in the industrial establishment, there shall be provided and maintained suitable and sufficient facilities for the taking of those meals.
43. (4): In every industrial establishment, there shall be provided and maintained, for the use of the industrial establishment, suitable and sufficient accommodation for clothing not worn during working hours, with separate accommodation where male and female workers are employed.
43. (5):     In every industrial establishment, not being an industrial establishment exempted from the provisions of this subsection, there shall be provided and maintained, for the use of the workers, suitable and sufficient sanitary conveniences, and suitable and sufficient washing facilities.
43. (6): An industrial establishment shall be exempted from the provisions of Subsection (5) if there is in force a certificate granted by the appropriate authority exempting that industrial establishment, and any such certificate shall remain in force until it is withdrawn by the Authority, but no such certificate shall be granted with respect to any industrial establishment, unless the authority is satisfied that by reason of restricted accommodation or other special circumstances affecting the industrial establishment, it is reasonable that such a certificate should be in force with respect thereto, and that suitable and sufficient sanitary conveniences or washing facilities as the case may be, are otherwise conveniently available, and, subject as hereinafter provided, a certificate in force with respect to any industrial establishment shall be withdrawn if the Authority at any time ceases to be so satisfied as aforesaid.
Provided that, if the occupier of an industrial establishment is aggrieved by the withdrawal of such a certificate, he may appeal to the Magistrate’s Court for the district in which the industrial establishment is situated, and that Court may make such order concerning the certificate as appears to the Court, having regard to the matters aforesaid to be just and equitable.
43. (7):    If it appears to the appropriate authority that there has been, in the case of any industrial establishment, a contravention of any of the provisions of this section, the Authority shall, by notice served on the occupier of the industrial establishment, require him to take within such time as may be limited by the notice such action as may be specified in the notice for the purpose of securing compliance with the said provision, and if any person served with such a notice fails to comply with the requirements thereof, he shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of seven thousand, five hundred dollars ($7,500), or in the case of a second or subsequent conviction in respect of the same requirement, to a fine of twelve thousand, five hundred dollars ($12,500) or seven hundred and fifty dollars ($750) for every day since the first conviction in respect of that requirement, whichever is the greater:
Provided that it shall be a defence to any proceeding under this subsection to prove that there was no contravention of this section, or that the requirements of any such notice as aforesaid were, within a reasonable time after service of the notice, complied with in so far as they were necessary to secure compliance with this section.
43. (8): In this section:
“Suitable and sufficient” means suitable and sufficient in the opinion of the appropriate authority, having regard to the circumstances and conditions affecting an industrial establishment, or any part of an industrial establishment, and
“appropriate authority” means the authority whose duty it is to enforce this section.
Apportionment of expenses
Apportionment of expenses is set out in Article 44 of the Act, which reads:
If any occupier of an industrial establishment who has incurred or is about to incur any expense for the purpose of ensuring that the requirements of the last foregoing section are complied with respect to the industrial establishment, alleges that the whole or any part of the expense ought to be borne by any other person having an interest in the premises, he may apply to the magistrate’s court for the district in which the industrial establishment is situated and that court may make such order concerning the expense or its apportionment as appears to the court, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, including the terms of any contract between the parties, to be just and equitable, and any order made under this section may direct that any such contract as aforesaid shall cease to have effect in so far as it is inconsistent with the terms of the order.
To be continued on Wednesday….
*The writer is the former General Secretary of the Clerical & Commercial Workers’ Union (CCWU) and also a former President of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Guyana (FITUG) and a former Vice President of the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC). He served the Caribbean Congress of Labour (CCL) as Research Officer 1983 – 1998.