With 11 workplace deaths recorded so far for 2024, Labour Ministry intensifies safety efforts
There have been 11 workplace deaths recorded between January 01 and May 31, according to Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton.
Minister Hamilton noted that the current figure is higher than the eight deaths recorded during the same period last year. This year’s fatalities have predominantly occurred in the construction and mining industries.
“We will continue to work with the miners, and we have a joint technical committee with GGMC and with the GDMA, and we work together to go out there and encourage and train miners," Minister Hamilton stated during an interview on Wednesday at his Brickdam, Georgetown office.
Despite these efforts, the increase in fatalities has prompted the Ministry to intensify its initiatives. “We hope that the trend that has started will not continue,” Hamilton added, expressing a strong commitment to reversing this troubling pattern.
In addition to the fatalities, the Ministry is currently investigating 77 non-fatal workplace accidents.
These incidents are at various stages of the investigation, and in some cases, the Ministry has had to hire consultants with specialised technical skills to assist in the investigations.
"All of those reports are at the preliminary stage, and in some instances, we had to hire consultants – people with technical skills to help us in the investigation,” Hamilton explained.
One particularly challenging investigation involves an accident and death at the Shore Base, where the complexity of the incident has necessitated external expertise.
“Sometimes these things are not so easy,” Hamilton remarked, acknowledging the difficulties involved in thoroughly investigating workplace accidents.
Only last week, an electrical technician sustained burns to various parts of his body after an electrical circuit that he was working on burst into flames.
At the time of the incident, the technician was working for an electrical company and was conducting voltage tests at the National Stadium in Providence, East Bank Demerara (EBD).
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