Kindly print the following in response to the article captioned `Fuel boat crewman succumbs to burns’ in Saturday’s edition of the Stabroek News It is with regret that I read of the demise of the youthful Deeraj Sanmogan. Mr Sanmogan is a victim of a society which has not adequately satisfied many of the basic needs of its workforce.
• This newspaper’s account of the accident does not state much. I am however curious to know;-
• Was the owner(s) of the vessel certified to handle and transport petroleum fuel?
• Was the vessel adequately equipped and certified for the functions it executed?
• Is there a mandatory schedule for the maintenance and verification of vessels involved in the handling, transportation and delivery of petroleum products?
* Did this vessel subscribe to those requirements?
• Were the crew members on this vessel trained (and certified) in the handling of petroleum products?
• What role if any did disrespect of the regulations governing the storage, handling, transportation and delivery of petroleum products play in this accident?
It is too often we read of similar disasters be they on boats, sawmills, or other places of work.
These are usually followed by investigations, the results of which are seldom published. The need for a safe work environment in Guyana is prescribed in the Occupational Health and Safety codes of the country. The enforcement, of these codes, falls within the purview of the OHS Unit of the Ministry of Labour.
Concomitant with operational safety standards should be those governing workforce training and certification. In 2004 the parliament of Guyana approved the passage of the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Bill. The Act allowed for the establishment of the TVET Council. This council is the agency responsible for the development and monitoring of workforce training standards to meet the needs of industry in Guyana. It also is the agency to advise the Ministers of Education and Labour on issues of workforce training and with regards them meeting the needs of occupational standards.
A certified workforce is of tremendous benefit to any society and Guyanese are still waiting on the TVET Council after almost six years to issue one certificate of competency to a worker. In the meanwhile skilled, but not certified Guyanese are being victimised in foreign lands, and many unskilled persons are being entrusted within the local workforce with tasks for which they are not adequately trained, and conditions of work which seriously fall short of the OSH codes by unscrupulous businesses. The latter exposing these persons to dangers such as happened to Mr. Sanmogan and not too long ago there were the cases of Mr Jerry Alexander Smith and Mr.
Surendra “Chris” Persaud among others.
Yours faithfully,
Elton McRae
