New regulations addresses health and safety in construction sector
The Department of Labour (DoL), in partnership with the Department of Public Works (DPW) and the South African Council for the Project and Construction Management (SACPCMP), promulgated the Construction Regulations 2014 at Birchwood Hotel on Monday, February 10.
These regulations provide a legislative platform to address health and safety in the South African construction sector.
The first and original Construction Regulations, on which the 2014 regulations are amended, were promulgated in 2003.
The promulgation of the Construction Regulations comes at a time when the construction industry is under the spotlight due to fatalities, injuries and disease associated with the construction sector.
The launch was addressed by the minister of Labour, Mildred Oliphant, and the minister of Public Works, Thulas Nxesi.
Speaking at the launch, Oliphant said that even though this industry is the heart-and-soul of our economy, it continues to be bedevilled by poor health and safety management.
The launch coincided with the signing of the Construction Health and Safety Accord (CHS Accord) by Built Environment Professional Councils.
According to Nxesi, the CHS Accord’s primary focus is to foster a safe environment for construction and mine workers.
The “Zero Harm” initiative in workplaces in promoting a meaningful social dialogue in occupational health and safety matters, was also advanced at the launch.
“The safety of employees must be an absolute priority. It is unacceptable that on average, two South African construction workers die every week,” Nxesi said.
The Construction Regulations introduce a concept of construction works permit system that will require that an application is lodged with the DoL, 30 days before construction is performed.
Each application will be examined properly to ensure that it meets the requirement for granting such a permit.
Another important aspect introduced in the regulations, is the registration of construction professionals in the following three categories: Construction health and safety agent, construction health and safety manager, and construction health and safety officer.
Oliphant mentioned that she has instructed the chief inspector to establish a Construction Health and Safety Technical Committee, which will consist of a range of stakeholders from the construction industry itself.
“The primary role of this committee will be to advise the chief inspector on construction-related codes, standards and training requirements, and to designate persons in writing to examine safety systems and records of companies which have high incident rates and provide recommendations to the chief inspector of occupational health and safety on the findings,” Oliphant explained.
She emphasised that the construction industry should not be thought of as a killer industry, but rather take its place in our economy.
