Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1479276
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 18 SEPTEMBER 2022 8 INTERVIEW Everyone has a part to play in occupational In 2018, you commented that "since 2002, the date of in- ception of OHSA, fatalities had significantly decreased from an average of 12 per year, to an average of four." Since then, however, the rate of work- place fatalities seems to have increased substantially. Last year, it stood at eight; and six workers have so far died as a result of accidents, in 2022…. which places us more or less with the same average of '12 per year', of 20 years ago. Wouldn't you say, then, that the 'increase in workplace fatalities' is more than just a popular perception? First of all, it is important to distinguish between the 'rate of workplace fatalities;… and the number of workers who actually die in accidents each year. Those statistics are not interchangeable. When we talk about 'six, 'eight', or even 'ten' [fatalities a year]… we are talking about numbers. But one has to view those num- bers within the context of the size of the working population. When OHSA was established in 2002, Malta's working popu- lation stood at around 150,000. Last year, it was close to 300,000. So the amount of people actu- ally working has more or less doubled in size, over the past 20 years. And that is why it is impor- tant to consider the rate - i.e., the number of occurrences (in this case, work-related fatalities) per 100,000 employees – rather than just the raw figures alone. So when we say that 'the rates are going down', we are referring to the number of fatalities, with- in the context of this increase in working population. Another important point is that when we collate data, we also in- clude all those accidents which involve workers, but which tech- nically fall outside the applicabili- ty of the OHA Authority Act. For example: although the raw num- ber of fatalities has gone up this year, that number also includes three employees who lost their lives while driving. There was a food-delivery driv- er, killed when a truck overturned on Aldo Moro Road in Marsa; there was a Go employee, who was fatally hit by a vehicle while riding a motorcycle on a work-er- rand… and these are accidents which fall outside the OHSA's direct remit: even though we do raise concerns about safety, in this context. These are, after all, 'workers at work'… and they need to be protected, too. But, technically speaking, there is very little in the way of tangi- ble steps that the OHSA can take in such cases. We cannot control the prevailing situation on Mal- ta's roads, at the particular point when such accidents happen… and neither can the employer… At least one of the cases you just mentioned involved a 'plat- form company'; and one of the criticisms levelled at such com- panies is they do not technically 'employ' anyone at all… in the sense that their delivery-men will actually be registered as 'self-employed'. Does this have a bearing on the problem you just mentioned? Does that sort of employment relationship make it harder, for instance, to enforce OHA rules? Not really, no… because we don't just deal with 'employers', as such. We are concerned with the health and safety of work- ers, across the board; which also means that – where necessary - we have to deal with employ- ers, yes; and when it comes to the self-employed, we deal with them, too. Nonetheless, the platform econ- omy is a hugely problematic area. What is really worrying, in such instances, are the conditions of employment; and the work-rela- tionship between the person who is assigning work; and the person who is actually doing the work. If we are talking about 'bogus employment', for instance – one of the many terms used to de- scribe the practice you mention – then it means that the 'self-em- ployed' person, would not actual- ly be 'self-employed' at all. They would be functioning as 'employ- ees'… only without the benefits, and protection, offered to em- ployees at law. Now: I'm not saying this is nec- essarily the situation with certain companies operating in Malta… but the situation certainly exists; not just here, but everywhere. And it's not the only problem area, either. Another issue con- cerns 'letter-box companies' – so called because they 'post' their employees to different countries; often in a way that the company itself cannot even be traced. As an aside: there is a lot of reference, nowadays, to food-de- livery companies. But the prob- lem in not limited only to those. There are many other companies which make use of similar re- cruitment practices – in the ca- tering and hospitality industries, for instance; or in healthcare (es- pecially in the private sector). All of these make use of the same model; so unless the model itself is addressed… an entity like the OHSA will always have to be in 'fire-fighting' mode: dealing with each individual case as it arises, but not with the source of the problem, as a whole. And the problem does need to be dealt with at source: because otherwise, we would be reduced to a situation of merely 'chasing shadows'… Let's go back to the latest NSO statistics: which reveal that construction accounts for the highest incidence of fatalities; followed by manufacturing, and other industries. Inevitably, 'accidents on building-sites' tend to be more 'visible', than whatever happens behind the closed doors of a factory. Is this another case where the public might be over-inflating the role of construction? Or is there re- ally a significant problem, with that particular sector? First of all, construction is rec- ognized as a high-risk problem everywhere in the world; not just in Malta. We do, however, rec- As Malta reels from the shock of two construction- related fatalities in just three days, OHSA CEO MARK GAUCI calls for collective responsibility among the many stakeholders involved: not just the regulatory authorities, and the building contractors themselves… but also, the people who hire them Raphael Vassallo rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt