-urges holistic workplace standards to protect workers’ mental, physical well-being

THE importance of strengthening psychosocial safety alongside general workplace protections in keeping with Guyana’s ongoing transformation were among the main points highlighted by Prime Minister, Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips, as he opened the Occupational Safety and Health Symposium at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre on Tuesday.

Celebrated under the theme, “Good psychosocial working environments: a pathway to thriving workers and strong organisation,” the event hosted a number of participants and stakeholders from the private sector and the International Labour Organization, along with occupational safety professionals, who all focused on advancing safer and healthier workplaces across Guyana.

Delivering the feature address, Prime Minister Phillips emphasised the importance of psychosocial safety and why the collective, holistic development of Guyana’s standards in the sector should be up to international standards, especially as the country continues to see new horizons.

Noting the significance of World Day for Safety and Health at Work and this year’s theme, the Prime Minister stated that no outcome in the workforce, industry or any sector is worth the cost of a single human life. Moreover, he cited the International Labour Organization, which he said established World Day for Safety and Health at Work to remind industry leaders and governments that even in aiming for excellence and development, it must not be done recklessly.

PM Phillips in noting the importance of this year’s theme said, “This year’s global theme is both timely and transformative. Usually, we focus on how to protect ourselves and our workplaces physically, but this year the theme asks us to look inward into the invisible architecture of the workplace itself.”

He added, “It asks us to examine workload and working hours, role parity and autonomy, the fairness of processes, and the quality of relationships between those who lead and those who labour.”

The benefits of strengthening these relationships go far beyond just creating happier workplaces. As Prime Minister Phillips highlighted, workers who are afforded the space to rest, engage with their families, and maintain a sense of personal stability are healthier, more focused, and far less prone to error. In this way, work-life balance becomes a critical safeguard, directly improving the state of the workforce at large.

‘WORK-LIFE BALANCE IS VITAL’

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister noted that work-life balance is vital.

“It strengthens morale, reduces burnout, and creates environments where individuals can perform at their best without compromising their mental and emotional health,” he said adding, “Therefore, the International Labour Organisation is leading the charge of a very important message, psychosocial hazards at work. Stress, burnout, harassment, poor communication, lack of control over one’s work are among the leading contributors to workplace accidents and illness and death worldwide.”

Furthermore, Prime Minister Phillips revealed that these factors are directly linked to 840,000 deaths worldwide each year. Calling these numbers ‘staggering,’ he added that Guyana has heard the call and is ready to act on it.

Speaking candidly about the journey of Guyana’s labour force and safety, he noted that a decade ago, Guyana was a different country in all aspects. As he explained, in occupational health and safety, the safety culture in many industries was often reactive, with a focus on responding to incidents rather than preventing them. Moreover, the idea of psychosocial well-being in the workplace was, for many employers, an afterthought, if it was a thought at all. With Guyana seeing more development than ever before, Prime Minister Phillips reinforced that every Guyanese employer and employee must uphold the highest internationally recognised standards of worker protection.

As he shared, “Our energy sector alone is driving demand for thousands of skilled and semi-skilled workers across construction, logistics, marine operations, engineering, and other services. And with that growth has come a firm realisation that the energy industry does not forgive negligence, nor does it tolerate complacency.”

Regarding the development of the framework and policies that shape workers’ health and safety, the PM said much has been done and much more is in the pipeline.

Further, he said Guyana’s occupational safety systems and policies have been reviewed and strengthened as the government continues to assess improvements at the policy and legislative level.

The aim and emphasis on developing standards go beyond energy sector workers, he said noting the importance of workers in the extractive and construction industries. However, even in these fields, he emphasised that psychosocial safety is important.

“High pressure environments where the cost of error is catastrophic, and they carry the psychological weight of working in environments of physical risk day after day often far from loved ones. These are real pressures that affect judgement and concentration, and most critically, they can accumulate silently until they exceed a limit, we are often unaware of,” he said.

The Prime Minister noted, however, that psychosocial working environments are built on policy and leadership at every level.

In a passionate appeal, Prime Minister Phillips called on every employer in every sector and industry to make a genuine commitment to psychosocial safety as a pillar of quality, health, safety, and environment frameworks. He further called for workplace audits to identify physical and psychological hazards, adding that managers should also be trained to lead with empathy.

He noted that his vision for worker safety standards will see rules clearly defined and workers feeling that the processes governing their work are fair and transparent. The Prime Minister said these steps are not only achievable at all levels, but necessary for continued progress, noting that the backbone of Guyana’s success is its workforce. “Guyana’s transformation is powered by people, the men and women whose hands and minds are building our country’s future, often at great personal sacrifice. Therefore, as much as we owe them wages, we also owe them safe environments, physically and psychologically.”