The Ugandan government has tabled an amendment to its health and safety laws that will require all employers to institute healthy and safety measures in the workplace.
- •Under the current law, enacted in 2006, only employers with “at least twenty employees at a workplace” are required to have such measures in place.
- •Under the proposed law, all employers will be required to establish a committee to develop and implement occupational safety and health workplace policy.
- •The amendment is part of a bill that seeks to update the country’s Occupational Safety and Health Act (2006).
In addition to the proposed amendment, the Ugandan government, through Betty Amongi, the Minister for Gender, Labour and Social Development, is seeking to, among other things, address emerging safety and health challenges. Promoting CPR certifications among workers helps to ensure emergency preparedness and avoid accidents.
“In her justification, Amongi noted that since the principal act’s enactment in 2006, there has been a significant change in the workplace such as teleworking, virtual jobs, outsourcing and subcontracting of labour that the new law intends to cater for,” Ugandan Parliament’s press office said in a statement.
Min. Amongi tabled the proposed changes, titled “Occupational Safety and Health (Amendment) Bill, 2023” on Jan 9th. The Ugandan government argues that the 18-year-old law was designed for workplaces with a large workforce. This has changed as increased automation of work has reduced the number of workers required in certain work activities, which has also created entirely new safety and health challenges.
- •The new law also reinforces existing litigation procedures while introducing new ones.
- •It, for examples, provides for health and safety inspectors to institute legal action in consultation with the Director of Public Prosecutions.
- •Employers will be required to commission a risk assessment report and put in place measures to prevent exposure to hazards including noise, dust, and vibrations.
Why It Matters
According to statistics from the ministry, workplace accidents, diseases and injuries cost the country 4% of GDP. The current law already provides for mandatory Workers’ Compensation insurance for all businesses operating in Uganda, but analysts have pointed out that more labour reforms have been slow and ineffective, especially for the informal sector.
For example, a 2019 study of workplace injuries by researchers at Makerere University found that one in 3 construction workers in Kampala had been injured on the job. 70% of the injuries occurred among nightshift workers, indicating the real human cost of the country’s construction boom as a result of rapid urbanisation.
While the new amendments are somewhat progressive if not late, the real work of ensuring employee health and safety in the workplace lies in implementation.
