State Minister Calls For Partnership To Ensure Wellness At The Workplace

Minister of State in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Zavia Mayne, is calling for concerted partnership to ensure wellness at the workplace.

The State Minister, who was addressing a virtual business conference organised by the University of Technology (UTech), on May 5, said the global statistics of injuries at the workplace is “worrisome”, hence his call for action.

He said it is important that students be equipped with the specialist skills that are necessary for them to function productively in the world of work, and that the importance of safety and health for their well-being should also be reinforced.

“We must all recognise our collective responsibility to strive towards eliminating occupational accidents, injuries and illnesses by ensuring that all workplaces are safe and healthy,” he told the forum.

The conference was held under the theme ‘Workplace Safety and Wellness: The Implications of Employee Productivity in Jamaica’.

Mr. Mayne said that multiple global research publications have demonstrated the direct correlation between greater levels of productivity in workplaces that have adopted a culture of safe and healthy work practices, versus those that have no regard for safety.

Pointing out that the Jamaica Productivity Centre (JPC) has documented that among the challenges to productivity improvement are management practices and wellness at the workplace, he said they are “critical elements” that impact the effective implementation of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) in the workplace.

“Implementing practices and management styles to improve productivity is important, but this must not be implemented without consideration for workplace safety, or there can be unintended negative impacts, which, in the long-run, will limit productivity,” Mr. Mayne argued.

He told the forum that data from the JPC have shown that industries that are able to adopt new and “appropriate technologies” can enhance productivity at a faster rate and are more resilient to shocks such as the current COVID-19 pandemic.

The State Minister stressed that while OSH should always be a priority, the results of the technology measures will have greater long-run outcomes if productivity improvement measures are considered as complementary and a trade-off in the process.

The JPC, he said, offers support to firms, enterprises and organisations that are looking for “creative and effective” ways to introduce productivity-enhancing measures that do not interfere with the health and safety of workers.