OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH POLICY: A SYSTEMIC APPROACH

TOWARDS RESILIENT AND PRODUCTIVE WORKFORCE IN NIGERIA

Introduction

Protecting workers from harm in the workplace is the goal of occupational safety and

health initiatives, which aim to boost productivity by keeping employees in peak physical

and mental condition. Good health and safety policies in the workplace have a positive

effect on employee dedication and output. Recent accidents involving Nigerian workers

have ranged from relatively minor to fatal, with some workers losing their lives on the job

and others suffering permanent disability after losing limbs or organs in the course of their

work. When it comes to their own programs and plans, many companies now treat

workplace safety and health with a sense of humor.

From the local workplace to the national and international levels, the human, social, and

economic costs of occupational accidents, injuries, and diseases and major industrial

disasters have long been a source of concern. As the economy and technology have

evolved, so have the methods and strategies employed to reduce or eliminate occupational

risks and hazards. Nevertheless, despite ongoing albeit slow improvements, the frequency

of occupational accidents and diseases remains too high, as does the toll taken on workers'

well-being and businesses' bottom lines as a result.

Maintaining a healthy and risk-free work environment is crucial. Workplaces with strong

health and safety policies tend to have happier, more engaged employees. Injuries sustained

by just one employee can have a ripple effect throughout an entire company, as evidenced

by the events of Rio in 2011.

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No matter the status of a claim, workplace stress has evolved into an occupational problem

for the health and safety of employees (such as hazardous materials, noise, cleanliness,

lighting and physical work overload). More than 2.3 million people die each year from

work-related accidents and diseases, and an additional 317 million occupational accidents

occur each year, many of which result in prolonged absences from work (International

Labour Organization, 2013). Every year, poor occupational safety and health practices are

estimated to cost the global economy 4 percent of GDP, which is an enormous human cost.

These deaths and injuries have a disproportionately negative impact on the economies of

developing countries, where a large proportion of the population is involved in potentially

deadly occupations.

People's sense of well-being and sense of self are profoundly impacted by the work they do

(Adeniji, Falola & Salau, 2017). It's a way for people to express who they are and how they

fit in with the world, and it's subject to the influence of economic, social, cultural, and

personal factors. Bamba (2016) argues that a person's sense of self develops in tandem with

their acceptance into various social roles, including those associated with paid work. As a

result, the norms associated with such important roles can cause emotional suffering and

functional decline. Many people have been shown to experience extreme negative reactions

after losing their jobs, such as psychological or physiological distress, withdrawal from

social contact, and even suicide (Martin & Miller, 2016). Because of occupational stress,

businesses may lose skilled workers.

National Occupational Safety and Health Policy

As a byproduct of its primary goal—the protection of workers' health and safety on the job

—Occupational Health and Safety (OSH) also boosts companies' output. Therefore, a

National Occupational Safety and Health Profile needs to be developed to clearly identify

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and coordinate the National Occupational Safety and Health System for efficient

management.

In light of Nigeria's ratification of Convention 155 on Occupational Safety, Health, and

Working Environment, the government has released the National Policy on Occupational

Safety and Health, a guide to Occupational Safety and Health in Nigeria. This policy

outlines the government's strategy for achieving the National development philosophy of

building a united, self-reliant, and egalitarian economy by reducing, to the greatest extent

possible, the causes and effects of hazards inherent to the working environment. In

November of 2006, the Policy became effective.

The goals of the Policy are to:

1. One of the goals of this framework is to "facilitate improvement of occupational

safety and health performance by providing the framework for participatory

occupational safety and health protection of workers, including the most vulnerable

groups in all sectors of economic activities;".

2. Second, in a private-sector-led economic growth scenario, ensure that workers'

rights protection is harmonized with regional and international standards. This will

put more emphasis on the role of the competent authority in creating a conducive

setting and enforcing various provisions to protect the health, safety, and well-being

of Nigerian workers on the job.

The objectives are:

1. To create a general framework for the improvement of working conditions and the

working environment

2. To prevent accidents and departures from health arising out of or in the course of

work

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 3. To ensure the provision of occupational safety and health services to workers in all

sectors of economic activity.

Both the private and public sectors are included in the Policy's purview, as are the

following goals and objectives: the prevention and control of hazards from all forms of

occupational exposure; the provision of health surveillance and emergency medical

services; the provision of training in the area of occupational health and safety; and the

gathering and storage of information pertaining to occupational health and safety. To

ensure uniformity in its application across the country, the Policy designated the Federal

Ministry of Labor and Employment as the Statutory Authority, or "Competent Authority,"

and spelled out its responsibilities in detail.

The Policy also outlined the Federal Ministry of Health's occupational responsibilities in

the areas of data collection, reporting, and regulation of occupational health practice in the

country. Among other measures, the Policy calls for the establishment of a National

Commission on Occupational Safety and Health to serve as a coordinating agency, as well

as the creation of an Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The Policy is scheduled

to be reviewed by the Appropriate Statutory Authority every three (3) years.

Occupational Stressors in the Workplace

Occupational stress is the second most common professional health issue in the European

Union. About a quarter of workers say they have emotional reactions to their jobs (Adeolu,

Yussuf & Popoola, 2016). When an employee's ability to meet the demands of their job is

exceeded by those of their employer or another occupational factor, the result is a negative

emotional state known as occupational stress. Nurses are particularly susceptible to

workplace stress because of the unique demands of the profession (Adeolu, Yussuf &

Popoola, 2016). There is a wide range of possible causes for occupational. Workload, lack

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of social support, burnout, work-family conflict or stress, insufficient job satisfaction, lack

of supervisor support, low organizational commitment, quality of care, small salary, and

limited opportunities for development are all contributors.

Workplace stressors that go unaddressed put people in a constant state of alertness and

raise the risk of "wear and tear" on their bodies. The body's defenses weaken from

exhaustion, and as a result, you're more likely to get sick, hurt, or diagnosed with a disease

when you're stressed out (National Institute of stress and Health – NISH, 2015). It is widely

accepted that stress is the root cause of numerous undesirable health effects, which have

repercussions not only for the affected individual but also for their employer and the larger

community. It is difficult, if not impossible, to put a price tag on the intangible costs

associated with stress in the workplace, which include the aforementioned outcomes.

Some of the most taxing aspects of the workplace are the long hours, shift work, role

overload, responsibility to coworkers and patients, and the physical environment. The

amount of work that must be completed is known as the "workload." The stress caused by

this has been studied extensively because of its significance. Stress from this source has

negative effects on health and well-being at both high and low levels of workload. When

the quantity of work exceeds an employee's capacity to complete it within a given time

frame, we say that their workload is excessive (French & Caplan, 2016). Simply put, an

excessive workload is one in which a worker's knowledge, skills, and abilities are not

matched by the demands of the job (Sauter & Murphy, 2015; French & Caplan, 2017). The

negative effects of work overload have been the subject of numerous studies. Women are

more likely to enter these fields, where there is a high likelihood that they will experience

increased stress due to high workloads and competing demands at home. The study

concluded that workload was not a standalone contributor to stress at work but rather that it

was typically combined with other factors in making such predictions.

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A person's quality of life in either their personal or professional life is influenced by their

experiences in the other. Since employers must take into account their employees' personal

lives when making hiring decisions (Akangbe & Tetteh, 2015), they must respect their

employees' commitments to their families (Akangbe & Tetteh, 2015). The term "spillover"

is used to describe this effect. Family and financial responsibilities are examples of the

"extra organizational" stress that can exacerbate or even cause workplace tensions.

Significant challenges arise in the study and management of stress in the workplace due to

the fact that extra- and intra-organizational influences on the work stress process are

virtually indistinguishable. A person's ability to cope with a work-related event is likely to

be significantly diminished if it occurs either immediately after a period of chronic stress at

home or in conjunction with other major life stressors (Russo & Vitaliano, 2015).

(Akangbe & Tetteh, 2015). Therefore, it's possible that people will be better able to adapt if

they experience stress at work in the absence of any other sources of stress.

Workers bring a wide variety of strengths and vulnerabilities to the workplace, including

personal vulnerabilities, which are recognized as an important predictor in the process of

work stress. In a work setting, where productivity and satisfaction are built on the unique

strengths of each employee, it would be impractical, if not counterproductive, to try to

eradicate all potential sources of vulnerability (Dollard, 2016). Employers can't escape

vulnerability because of the evolving nature of the workforce and the inclusion of people

who are inherently vulnerable (e.g., those with preexisting psychiatric illnesses or

disabilities, and those without adequate social support or financial resources).

Workers need to be able to take on a variety of roles in the workplace to keep up with the

ever-evolving technologies and the pressure to keep organizational productivity at a high

level (Akangbe & Tetteh, 2015). These institutional shifts are regarded as potentially

hazardous to employees' health. Certainly, recent studies have shown that performance

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pressure is one of the most stressful aspects of professionals' jobs (Cahn, 2016). Other

research has shown that the ever-evolving nature of work is associated with a higher

incidence of illness and injury (Nelson, 2015; Oxtoby, 2015).

Occupational Safety in the Workplace

The field of occupational safety and health aims to ensure the health and safety of workers

across all industries. Creating a risk-free workplace is the primary focus of all occupational

health and safety initiatives (Frend & Kohn, 2006). Workplace hazards and health can have

a cumulative effect on an employee's health, which is the focus of occupational health.

Occupational safety, on the other hand, focuses on preventing accidents and reducing the

risk of any aspect of the workplace that could lead to physical harm to workers (Armstrong,

2012).

Workers in the informal economy are much more likely to suffer poor health or injury as a

result of their exposure to poor working conditions, low safety and health standards, and

environmental hazards. The vast majority of workers in the informal economy are woefully

unprepared for the hazards they face. Since much informal work takes place in people's

homes, inspectorates cannot investigate working conditions or get information and advice

to the people who need it, and the very nature of the informal economy makes it nearly

impossible for governments to collect the vital statistics needed to take appropriate

remedial action.

Principles defining workers' rights in this area and assigning responsibilities to competent

authorities, employers, and workers are enshrined in the ILO Conventions and

Recommendations on occupational safety and health.

The onus of ensuring a safe and healthy workplace falls on employers due to the presence

of occupational hazards. This necessitates that they take measures to eliminate hazards in

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the workplace and guarantee worker safety. However, the duty of health also extends to the

management team, who must be aware of occupational dangers in the workplace and take

measures to ensure their employees' safety and well-being. Decisions on the type of

technology used and the structure of the workplace, for instance, should be informed by a

concern for workers' health and safety.

Providing employees with appropriate training is a critical part of any company's human

resource department. Employees must be trained not only in the skills necessary to perform

their jobs but also in the safety measures necessary to safeguard their own and their

coworkers' health and safety on the job. Managers and supervisors have the duty to provide

their employees with the proper training they need to carry out their assigned tasks

successfully. Safety and health issues related to the job, as well as methods for avoiding or

lessening those risks, should be covered in such instruction (Cahn, 2016).

Health Policy in the Workplace

Rather than focusing solely on the absence of disease or infirmity, the World Health

Organization (WHO) defines health as "a state of complete physical, mental, and social

well-being." A healthy school is one that "constantly strengthens its capacity as a healthy

setting for living, learning, and working," as defined by the World Health Organization.

(WHO, 2019). According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World

Health Organization (WHO), health and safety at work is aimed at:

 the promotion and maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and social

well-being of workers in all occupations;

 the prevention among workers of leaving work due to health problems caused by

their working conditions;

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  the protection of workers in their employment from risks resulting from factors

adverse to health;

 the placing and maintenance of the worker in an occupational environment adapted

to his or her physiological and psychological capabilities;

 and, to summarise, the adaptation of work to the person and of each person to their

job.

The characteristics of a health promoting workplace should include:

 Fostering friendly and healthy environment

 Integrating health officials in the effort to make the organisation a healthy place

 Providing healthy environment, skill – based health education and health services

 Striving to improve the health of learners, personnel and the community

 Preventing leading causes of death, disease and disabilities in the workplace

Protecting workers and anyone else who might be harmed by a company's operations,

goods, or services is the primary goal of health and safety policies and programs.

Companies often face a conundrum when attempting to minimize workplace injuries, as

they have a finite amount of resources at their disposal and need to allocate them most

effectively.

In terms of occupational safety and health, governments are ultimately accountable for

policy development and enforcement. Legislation will be a reflection of policies, and the

law must be enforced. But laws can't prevent all hazards in the workplace, so collective

agreements between the social partners may be the best way to deal with occupational

safety and health issues. Having both employers and employees, through their respective

groups, participate in the policymaking process increases the likelihood that the resulting

document will be accepted and put into effect. This is the case whether the rules in question

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come from statutes, administrative codes, or negotiated union contracts. Provisions for the

establishment, operation, and progressive extension of occupational health services should

be outlined in the occupational safety and health policy. The implementation of a health

surveillance system for workers should be supervised and advised upon by the competent

authority, with the system linked to programs for the prevention of accidents and diseases,

as well as the protection and promotion of workers' health on both the enterprise and

national levels. Surveillance data will reveal if and where occupational safety and health

standards are being followed, highlighting any gaps in protection for employees.

It's common knowledge that a company can only reap the full rewards of its efforts if its

employees are in peak physical and mental health. Workplace health programs have been

shown to improve service delivery and decrease the prevalence of potentially harmful

health behaviors (Idoko, 2013). Agbola (2012) found that a lack of effective health and

safety management practices, inadequate training in safety knowledge, a lack of

information on dangerous chemicals and hazardous materials, a failure to monitor and

enforce safety rules, and the absence of essential safety equipment all have a negative

impact on both employee morale and the effectiveness of the organization as a whole.

Besides boosting people's happiness and emotional well-being, health safety is a key factor

in keeping them that way, according to Torjman (2004). When employees enjoy their jobs,

they are more likely to go above and beyond for customers. Accordingly, businesses could

better compete with rivals for talent by offering employee welfare services. Good

employees might leave if they find another company that provides better health benefits.

Indirect monetary benefits, as noted by Martins and Miller (2016), include health insurance

and vacation pay for employees. Employer benefits are not only an incentive for workers to

do their best, but also a selling point when it comes time to fill open positions. Providing a

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safe and healthy safety health for employees has traditionally been seen as a perk, and it

can help perpetuate a culture of appreciation on the part of employers. However, the health

and safety of employees is not only for the worker's benefit, but also for the management's

in the long run (Amah, 2010).

Lim (2012) found that when workers understood the health and safety rules and procedures

of their job and the tools used for working, it helped them to work effectively and

efficiently, resulting in better performance of employees, which was in turn linked to the

effectiveness of the company's occupational health policy. Health and safety promotion at

the workplace, as argued by Hudson (2012), has a direct, positive effect on productivity, as

found by Lim (2012). Workplace health and safety programs have been shown to increase

productivity by Iheanacho and Ebitu (2016).

Link between Productivity and Occupational Safety and Health Policy

As such, trade unions believe that Occupational Health and Safety should be given

prominent status in collective bargaining and terms of employment. Workers, communities,

and nations all benefit greatly from living in a secure and healthy environment. This also

implies that the union and the employer should work together to ensure a safe and healthy

workplace, as a healthy worker is an asset to the company. According to Fajana (2012), a

well-managed safety culture based on tried and true principles of workplace safety will

result in employees who actively participate in training and who are able to recognize and

report potential hazards to both management and their coworkers. They take responsibility

for their own and others' safety, and as a result, they learn to implement effective

preventative measures. He believes that a strong safety culture must begin with a

company's leadership, and that this begins with an acceptance of safety as a responsibility.

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Each and every industrial and workplace accident has a root cause that can be eliminated

with the use of currently available measures and strategies. Accident rates in developed

nations have dropped steadily over the past few decades, proving this point. Because of

this, there are substantial human and economic benefits to implementing preventative

measures.

To ensure the health and happiness of employees and to positively impact productivity, it is

crucial to advocate for increased workplace safety and health as part of a larger effort to

enhance working conditions. By improving their own motivation and job satisfaction, as

well as the quality of the products and services they produce, healthy workers improve the

lives of their customers and the community as a whole. Therefore, improvements in quality

and productivity can't happen without first ensuring the health, safety, and well-being of the

working population. This is crucial for achieving equitable and sustainable socioeconomic

development.

Conclusion

The establishment and enforcement of effective policies rely heavily on the collection and

dissemination of accurate information on hazards and hazardous materials, surveillance of

workplaces, monitoring of compliance with policies and good practice, and other related

activities. The promotion of health at work is an integral part of occupational health. We

cannot afford to take for granted the policies and programs in place within our

organizations to ensure everyone's safety. The company's safety and health policies in the

workplace should be more than just lip service; they should be clear and occupational.

Positive action should be taken by both employer and worker organizations to implement

training and information programs with the goal of preventing occupational hazards in the

workplace and controlling and protecting against existing risks, such as those caused by air

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pollution, noise, and vibration. The government should serve as a catalyst by encouraging

training and providing the required resources and experts. Employers have a duty to create

a safe and healthy workplace, and that duty should be reflected in the company's safety and

health policy.

Workers have rights that should be reflected in the company's policy regarding

occupational safety and health. In particular, employees have the legal right to leave a

hazardous workplace and the discretion to decline performing or continuing work that they

believe poses an immediate and serious risk to their health or safety. They need to be

shielded from the unintended consequences of their actions.

In conclusion, it is the responsibility of management to ensure that employees are safe from

harm in the workplace. Management's commitment to worker safety and health can be

shown in words and deeds through policies, procedures, and financial incentives, and in

turn, managers and workers will take extra precautions to ensure a safe work environment.

Maintaining a safe and healthy workplace health shouldn't be seen as something that

happens on the side, but as occupational to how safety is conducted.

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