An action month for labour safety and hygiene will be launched on May 4 in the central province of Quảng Nam. —  Photo baocongthuong

HÀ NỘI — An action month for labour safety and hygiene will be launched on May 4 in the central province of Quảng Nam, an official has said.

The event aims to raise awareness of employers and workers in the observation of occupational safety and hygiene regulations and to reduce the number of labour-related accidents and occupational diseases, according to Hà Tất Thắng, head of Labour Safety Department under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs (MoLISA).

Various activities will be held during the action month, including a dialogue between the National Council on Occupational Safety and Health and enterprises and a workshop entitled on recent examples of occupational accidents and how to avoid them.

Labour inspectors will visit to enterprises and households in the informal sector in Hà Nội, Bắc Ninh and Quảng Nam provinces during the month.

Several construction sites and corporations nationwide will also be inspected for compliance with occupational safety and health regulations.

MoLISA deputy minister Lê Tấn Dũng said at the action month will enhance labour safety and hygiene training at local businesses, helping them update necessary information to tackle labour-related accidents, fires and explosions in the workplace.

Actions months tend to give employers more responsibility in caring for the health of the employees, while businesses with high risk of labour accidents and diseases have invested more in equipment and technology to improve labour conditions.

According to MoLISA’s occupational safety report for 2018, nearly 8,000 work related accidents were reported, resulting in 1,039 deaths and 8,229 injuries.

The localities with the highest number workplace accidents are HCM City, Hà Nội, Hải Dương, Thái Nguyên, Yên Bái, Đồng Nai and Quảng Ninh.

Labour-related accidents occurred mainly in construction, material production and mechanical manufacturing sectors.

The actions of employers are the reason for more than 46 per cent of fatal occupational accidents, while workers are responsible for more than 18 per cent and 35 per cent come from other causes. VNS