Workplace Health Without Borders (WHWB)

Here are some heat stress resources sent by WHWB members: https://lnkd.in/gXWYaUtd In addition, please see these links on heat stress from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health & Safety OSH Answers Fact Sheets - https://lnkd.in/gT9JXx-u Main Topic Page – Temperature https://lnkd.in/gDtnx_jf Publication – Working in Hot Environments https://lnkd.in/gq25Wyxe Poster – Heat Illness https://lnkd.in/g5RvDa_N Poster – Sun Safety https://lnkd.in/ec65bhk Poster – Working in Heat https://lnkd.in/gtP9txc4  

Please join Workplace Health Without Borders for our webinar on  Health and Safety as a Fundamental Principle and Right at Work with featured speaker Joaquim Pintado Nunes,   Chief, Occupational Safety and Health and Working Environment Branch, International Labour Organization (ILO) December 4, 2024, 10:00 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST), 15:00 UTC, 3:00 p.m. GMT Registration link: https://lnkd.in/gPzHYWVt For more information see: https://lnkd.in/gvScqx66 In 2022, a safe and healthy working environment became one of the five fundamental rights of workers, reinforcing its force as international law. Joaquim Nunes will share with us what this means for all workers. The Branch that he heads coordinated the development of the ILO Global Strategy on Occupational Safety and Health as a pathway to achieving the goal of safe and healthy work for all. He will discuss with us opportunities for working together to support this goal.

Several hundred people remain in an illegal mine in South Africa after the government cut off vital supplies and refused to help them, in a bid to crack down on the industry. Food and water supplies to those underground were halted by police seeking to force the illegal miners to come to the surface. Ilegal miners can travel up to 4 kilometers underground and spend months below ground in old mines, according to the South Africa’s Minerals Commission. Without supplies, working conditions are deteriorating underground. Reports vary as to how many miners were in the abandoned gold mine in the North West (NW) province. NW police spokesperson Sabata Mokgwabone said the three miners who came to the surface indicated that up to 4,000 miners could be underground. A police Deputy National Commissioner, Tebello Mosikili, said the number of miners who had emerged was 1,187. Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe said that food and water supplies to those underground was halted. Meshack Mbangula, a community-based group called the Mining Affected Communities United in Action (MACUA), said that food and water supplies were cut off for the past three months to the underground miners. David Van Wyk, a lead researcher at Johannesburg-based Benchmarks Foundation that monitors mining and corporate social responsibility told CNN that the miners could be in a critical condition. South Africa’s Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) said South Africa harbors up to 100,000 artisanal miners, known as “zama zamas.” Most of the minerals derived from artisanal mining “sold to the black market, and international illicit mineral traders.” It blamed the government for failing to regulate the mining sector. Van Wyk attributed the spike in illegal mining to 6,000 abandoned mines left unclosed by large-scale companies and multinational corporations. He added that retrenched workers “have no other recourse” or extra skills, “so they go down the mines and do the only thing they are capable of doing, which is working in those mines.” Police have escalated attempts to stamp out the activity of illegal miners, with more than a billion dollars lost to illegal mining in South Africa annually, according to the country’s Minerals Council. The blackmarket trade in gold has fueled violent turf wars, as the nation grapples with one of the world’s highest murder rates. The Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, said that no help would be given to the illegal miners. Speaking to state media, Mametlwe Sebei, who heads the General Industries Workers Union of South Africa, the illegal industry often takes place in “horrific conditions” and under the control of organized crime syndicates. He warned that as long as unemployment and poverty remained rife in the country, “you can’t stop people from going down into disused mines because they will risk their lives to make sure they put food on the table.” Ref: https://lnkd.in/ez8qJa3W

WHWB Webinar on Occupational Heat Management November 8, 9:00 a.m. EST (2:00 p.m. GMT) https://lnkd.in/gACwh4rn The presentation highlights two key factors in heat stress management: Heat Index (exposure) and workload. Simple tools such as thermometers, hygrometers, and manual workload adjustments can be integrated into day-to-day operations to monitor and mitigate heat stress. Furthermore, the importance of basic interventions, such as providing water, shade, and rest, will be emphasized as foundational elements of effective heat stress management. Our guest speaker is Nanisuria Aris, a Certified Industrial Hygienist by the Board for Global EHS Credentialing. She holds a degree in chemical engineering and a master's in ergonomics. Nanisuria has about 30 years' experience in safety, health and environment. She is currently a Lead of Industrial Hygiene in one of the major oil & gas companies in Qatar. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gUugSnGj

Workplace Health Without Borders was presented to the members of the American Industrial Hygiene Assocation (AIHA) Carolinas local section at their fall meeting in Mrytle Beach, South Carolina. The presentation described the work being done and advocated for the need for occupational and industrial hygienists to provide support for marginalized populations that are subjected to health hazards and risk.

In 2024, ERM conducted a global health and safety survey. The title of this report, Rising to the Challenge of the Constantly Changing World of Work, speaks to the tectonic shifts that we are witnessing in how, where and by whom work is delivered. It was a truly global collaboration between Occupatoinal and Environmental Health and Safety (OEHS) Function Leaders and ERM consultants, with indepth structured interviews with the 256 participants and 39 Roundtable engagements on 10 different themes yielding a wealth of insight. One of the most interesting topics was the one thing that they would, like to do more of/do differently, was a personal appetite for more engagement with the workforce, management, and senior leadership. Just over half (54%) are stretched (factors ranked 1, 2 and 6). Organizational arrangements and a lack of access to or engagement with senior leadership accounted for a combined 13% (factors ranked 3, 8 and 13). In many respects the two lists, not surprisingly, encapsulate the many-faceted breath and depth of the challenge that emerged from the engagements with the participants. Leading OEHS functions at a time of extraordinary change and growing complexity in the field is enormously challenging, with constantly evolving expectations from every internal and external stakeholder group, where the impacts on business are rising relentlessly. And all of the indicators point to more of the same for the foreseeable future. Confronted by these challenges, taking the time to engage deeply with the organization, to think strategically and engage substantively with senior leadership are imperatives, not ideals. What do you think about these survey results?

It’s SCIENCE WEEK in Australia! No better time to hear from the scientists of workplace exposure and how we use science to make people safer. Check out my vid..

AIHA offers discounted rates for emerging economies The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) offers international memberships to people outside the United States and Canada, with even lower rates to those in emerging economies. They also offer steep discounts on resources and courses for people in emerging economies. See https://lnkd.in/gPJ_UJex The list of products and courses discounted for emerging economies is available here: https://lnkd.in/gJN-hrjH Of particular interest to WHWB members is the course Basic Principles of Occupational Hygiene, based on course materials from the Occupational Hygiene Training Association (OHTA).

There are so many opportunities for OEHS professionals to come together and share their knowledge and experience. This field is so diverse that nobody can ever know everything but together we can present a business case for leadership, investors, workers, families and their communities to live a more prosperous life with lower risk and a greater sense of empowerment.