The world, especially developing countries, need to establish minimum allowable working conditions for employees. Men and women should be able to work at their jobs in a clean and friendly environment that is respective of their culture and encourages cooperation and growth.
Research findings on occupational health and safety management policies and practices of manufacturing companies in Ghana, and an ethical assessment of employment practices on Nigerian construction industry will be examined so recommendations can be made to establish regional employment practices and policies minimal acceptable working conditions.
Employees are entitled to carry out their work in a safe environment, devoid of any harm. However, in most cases, the basic right of workers to a safe and health work environment is violated in most African countries including Ghana. Available statistics from the Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations shows that the number of reported accidents increased from 105 in 2014 to 178 in 2015 and that the majority of the cases are in the manufacturing sector. Against this background, this study examined occupational health and safety practices and policies among manufacturing companies in Ghana.
The theoretical arguments of this study are grounded in the behaviour change theory, the theory of behaviour-based safety and enlightened value maximisation. The case study design of the qualitative research approach was adopted to explore the research questions. In all, 10 Health and Safety Officers of 10 manufacturing companies participated in the study through in-depth interviews. There were also eight (8) representatives of Employee Labour Unions that participated in the study through in-depth interviews. The interviews were triangulated with observation of the working environment of the companies. An inductive thematic analysis was performed on the interview data where emergent themes from the interviews were identified and coded among the participants.
The study notes that occupational safety and health culture of the companies has been largely expressed in policies and procedures than practice. The study also concludes that adherence to occupational health and safety practices impacts on the performance of the employees. The Safety Officers together with the HR and all line managers of the companies should develop and disseminate norms and standards that integrate behavioral safety principles into the traditional safety management systems of the companies.
Dr. Doris Aryee