Editorial
Make the workplace safe and healthy
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Many people are of the view that good health implies the absence of diseases and the availability of healthcare facilities that help us treat sicknesses and diseases that we may suffer from time to time.
People may not be sick or suffer from diseases but may still be found to be unhealthy due to the circumstances in which they may find themselves at the workplace. Unfavourable workplace creates implications far beyond the emotional well-being of employees.
A crucial aspect of fair treatment in the workplace involves having a genuine concern for your employees’ mental and physical health. Therefore, we should ensure that every employee has a safe workspace and a healthy work-life balance.
Maintaining a healthy work-life balance or harmony is not only important for health and relationships, but it can also improve employees’ productivity, and ultimately performance.
It is for this reason that management and staff are often advised or encouraged to create a conducive atmosphere for effective work. Inconducive atmosphere may threaten the health of people at their workplaces.
When this happens, the workers may not find themselves in a good mood to increase productivity. Such a situation ought to be avoided to make workers happy and productive.
For example, employees who have disability may likely need certain accommodations offered them in order for them to perform their duties well. Poor workplace conditions can lead to unmotivated employees, poor productivity, and an increased risk of accidents.
Depending on how bad the conditions are, an employer may also be in violation of labour regulations, which could cause substantial legal issues.
The situation where some unfriendly managers and chief executives shout at their subordinates does not augur well for sound workplace ethics. Every worker deserves special respect from management so as to ensure encouragement and recognition.
Even in a situation where workers are wrong, senior management will have to show motherly and fatherly love in taking corrective measures to avoid a recurrence.
No one should constitute himself into a terrible dictator whose only purpose at the workplace is to shout at workers, as well as victimise and punish them unfairly.
The most important resource or asset at the workplace is the group of people who work there. Without such people, not much can be achieved, which explains why the staff in any organisation must be treated with respect.
Victimisation, favouritism, discrimination, and dictatorial tendencies cannot result in good works or productivity. Fair treatment rather can have a greater impact on employee turnover than you may imagine.
In light of all this, let us show respect to one another at the workplace, irrespective of our status or position, so that together we can join forces to increase productivity and thereby move the country forward.
If we all pursue this idea, we will end up making everyone happy at the workplace.
Dear Editor,
I am deeply concerned about the increasing reports of fathers sexually abusing their own daughters.
This disturbing trend is not only destroying families but also leaving victims with lifelong emotional, psychological and physical trauma.
Parents are expected to protect and nurture their children, not become a source of fear and abuse. Such acts are unacceptable and must be condemned by every section of society.
I urge law enforcement agencies to investigate these cases promptly and ensure perpetrators face the full rigours of the law.
At the same time, government, religious bodies, schools and civil society organisations must intensify public education on child protection and encourage victims and witnesses to report abuse without fear.
Communities must also stop shielding offenders because of family ties or social status. Every child deserves to grow up in a safe and loving environment.
I hope this issue receives the urgent national attention it deserves.
From Eugene Ampiaw
Accra
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reports that drowning is still one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide for those between the ages of one and 24, with children under five being most at risk.
Drowning is defined as being underwater and not being able to breathe, which can result in death or injury.
Additionally, UNICEF has warned that children playing in or near water without adequate supervision and safety precautions can quickly transform a happy moment into a tragedy.
It is worrying that children and young adults make up the majority of the estimated 1,100 drowning deaths that occur in Ghana alone each year, or almost three deaths per day.
These were contained in a statement commemorating World Drowning Prevention Day, which is observed on July 25 every year to strengthen national and international efforts to prevent drowning.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), drowning is a preventable global public health emergency that kills around 300,000 people a year, or 30 people every hour on average.
In addition to the numbers, many more cases in isolated areas go unreported, underscoring the problem as a serious yet underappreciated threat to public health.
Drowning can result in death, long-term health problems, or disability, hence it is important to raise awareness of this issue by educating the public on how to save lives.
Although flooding is a common cause of drowning, swimming pools, natural bodies of water like lakes and rivers, and residential water storage facilities are the most common locations. As a result, preventing drowning necessitates ongoing supervision, physical barriers, and critical water safety education.
Additionally, training in basic water rescue techniques and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), an emergency lifesaving operation carried out when the heart stops beating, is crucial.
It is important for parents and community people to learn how to react to an emergency without endangering themselves.
There is the need to install a fence around any body of water near your house, such as a pond or pool, to keep children from walking in unattended. Keep an eye on your children and avoid becoming sidetracked by your phone or talking to someone else.
The Spectator agrees with the WHO’s recommendation to cover more water sources, including cisterns, wells, and water containers, in order to avoid an accidental fall. When not in use, keep bathroom and laundry room doors locked and empty buckets, containers, and portable pools.
Teaching school-age children over six years old the fundamentals of swimming and water safety is one of the best approaches to prevent drowning.
