Labor Minister Kemal Purišić stated the common concern of all should be a healthy workplace, while Inspection affairs Department Director Alija Košuta stated this sector is in better condition than in previous years and the number of accidents in the workplace is diminishing.
Construction sites will require the presence of at least the number of occupational safety experts as there are contractors and subcontractors, as the newest changes to the relevant law state, planned to reduce injuries and deaths at Montenegro construction sites.
Construction sites will be accessible only to persons with labor contracts with the investor or contractor, which should reduce the black market hiring, it was said on Friday at an occupational safety panel discussion organized by the International Labor Organization, the Inspection Affairs Department, Occupational Safety Association and Labor Ministry, to mark 28 April as the World Day for Safety and Health at Work.
Svetlana Vuksanović from the Employers’ Union stated that a safe and healthy worker is the only productive worker. Duško Zarubica from the Union Federation stated they cannot be satisfied with the current situation due to safety issues for workers in the metallurgy and construction sectors, the attitude of employers in catering sectors and trade which endanger the health of workers.
Srđa Keković of the Free Unions Alliance said the law still does not regulate the occupational safety inspection as being responsible for insolvent companies, citing as a bad example the Aluminium Combine. He reminded that 12 workers of the steel mill were let go as they refused to work in perilous conditions.
Head of the Occupational Safety and Work Health Directorate Danijela Šuković pointed out the Ministry is at the disposal of all interested to provide better information about safety and health in the workplace.
Chief occupational safety inspector Zlatko Popović noted they have eight inspectors or three times less than the EU standard. They recently released a tender for new inspectors, but no one applied, speaking of the difficulty of the job.
Translated from Vijesti Online, click here for the original.
