Confab on workers’ safety kicks off

Gov. Juan N. Babauta yesterday proclaimed Aug 15-21 as Commonwealth Health and Safety Week, urging all employers to learn what they can to provide a safe and healthy workplace for their workers.

The proclamation kicked off the Governor’s 3rd Annual Health and Safety Conference, which carries the theme “Striving for Excellence in Worker, Public, Environmental Safety and Health Protection.”

This year’s conference opens at the World Resort Saipan Hotel in Susupe at 8:30am today. The opening ceremonies will feature addresses by Babauta, Strasheim, and NMASH officials. Nelson Befitel, Hawaii’s director of labor and industrial relations, will offer the keynote address.

“I encourage all employers in the Commonwealth to avail themselves of the educational opportunities to make working conditions the safest and healthiest possible for their workers,” Babauta said in his proclamation.

The observance of the Commonwealth Health and Safety Week came as a result of the creation of the Northern Marianas Alliance for Safety and Health, a cooperative effort between public and private entities with the goal of improving health and safety conditions for CNMI workers.

“The health and safety of our workers is of the utmost importance to this administration. It is not only good business practice, but also good common sense,” Babauta noted. “Injuries and illnesses account for decreased production and low morale in the workforce. But the combined efforts of organizations in this alliance can help make a safer and healthier workplace the norm rather than the exception.”

NMASH members include the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Northern Marianas College, Division of Environmental Quality; departments of Labor, Public Works, Public Health, and Public Safety; Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association, Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands, Saipan Contractors Association, and the Saipan Chamber of Commerce.

Aside from alliance members, representatives from other island nations and territories in the Pacific, as well as the State of Hawaii, are expected to attend this week’s event.

The conference will include morning plenary sessions by the OSHA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the OTI and local safety trainers and the CNMI Departments of Public Health, Public Safety and the Emergency Management Office.

NMASH will offer afternoon breakout training sessions in three separate tracks: construction industry, general industry, and public sector training, where participants can receive OSHA 502 and 503 certification.

On Friday, Aug. 19, first aid and CPR training in English, Tagalog, and Mandarin Chinese will be held for conference participants. Maritime and shipyard training will be conducted that Friday as well.

The conference costs $50 and includes all sessions from Aug. 15 to 19, including First Aid and CPR training, all construction and general industry certification courses, all conference packages and materials, and morning and afternoon light refreshments all week.