Comply with OSHS law, DOLE tells employers

The DOLE official also encouraged workers to be more assertive of their rights, saying the law “allows them to report violations so they should insist on this right provided to them.” (PNA photo)

MANILA — An official of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Tuesday urged companies to follow provisions of Republic Act No. 11058 or the Occupational Safety and Health Standards (OSHS) law.

“We now have a law, so let us just comply with it and provide our workers with the minimum protection required,” Labor Undersecretary Joel Maglunsod said in an interview.

The DOLE official also encouraged workers to be more assertive of their rights, saying the law “allows them to report violations so they should insist on this right provided to them.”

Several labor groups echoed DOLE’s statement, noting that employers should ensure the protection of their employees from harm, injury, or death.

“We hope and we are looking forward to more employers and business owners complying with occupational safety and health standards and minimizing workplace deaths and injuries,” the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said in a statement.

The Federation of Free Workers also welcomed the signing of the new law.

“We hope it is respected by employers and enforced effectively,” it said.

The OSH Law aims to ensure a safe and healthful workplace for workers by affording them full protection against all hazards at work.

Likewise, it provides that any person who manages, controls, or supervises the work is compelled to ensure that the place of employment is safe for workers, and should be free from hazardous conditions likely to cause death, illness, or physical harm to workers.

The law states that workers may report to their supervisor or employer any work hazard that may be discovered in the workplace, while giving them the right to refuse to work if an imminent danger situation exists that may result in illness, injury, or death.