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DOLE to construction firm owners: Protect your workers

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ABRA, Philippines – “You are professionals who can identify work hazards and who are able to prevent accidents in the workplace.” This was the challenge posed by Regional Director Nathaniel V. Lacambra of the Department of Labor and Employment-Cordillera Administrative Region (DOLE-CAR) to the owners and representatives of construction firms in the province during the forum-orientation on Construction Safety and Health Program (CSHP) at the Provincial Capitol on July 20.
The forum primarily aimed to intensify the awareness of contractors including officials in charge of issuing building permits from the local government units and the Abra Engineering District Office on CSHP. Lacambra emphasized the mandatory approval of a construction safety and health program for every infrastructure project as per Department Order No. 13, series of 1998 otherwise known as the Guidelines Covering the Occupational Safety and Health in the Construction Industry.
Lacambra challenged the project owners and safety officers of the contractors to do their role in ensuring the safety and health of the construction workers in all their project operations and undertakings. Engr. Ernest Quinson of the DOLE-CAR also discussed the provisions of the Joint Administrative Order No. 13 Series of 1998 with emphasis on the commitments and agreements as well as responsibilities of the collaborating agencies in order to ensure proper coordination and harmonization of policies and programs to ensure safety and health of the workers.
The collaborating agencies involved in the implementation of the said order are DOLE, Dept. of Public Works and Highways, Dept. of Trade and Industry, Dept. of Interior and Local Government, Professional Regulations Commission, and the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board. Quimson also discussed the other salient features of AO13which ensures the efficient monitoring of the construction activities, the protection and welfare of the workers employed in the construction firm including the general public particularly those within the immediate vicinity of the construction site.
The AO also looks into the promotion of harmonious employer-employee relationships in the construction industry. Vice-Governor Ronald S. Balao-as also underscored the importance of CSHP by providing personal protective equipment and the need to have safety officers who monitor the compliance of the Occupational Safety and Health Standards in the construction industry.

Criselda Cabangon David, a happy mother of two kids, is a full-time Sociologist at the City Government of Lucena, Quezon Province. She is currently the Managing Editor of Ang Diaryo Natin Sunday News, a weekly local community newspaper in the Philippines and an active member of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines.