Occupational Safety and Health: An Investment for a Rich Future

There is more to safety than just prevention. It is a fact that safety is the most uncomfortable venture for most occupiers. Most employers look at safety as having Nil return on Investment. 

However, when safety is viewed from its three pillars, the legal, moral and business obligation, it becomes profitable. 

Most employers have comprehended the statement’s weight, as mentioned earlier and are now increasingly embracing occupational safety, health, and the environment.

They have realized that a safe work environment increases productivity. It is better to prevent rather than relent and treat symptoms. 

Therefore, as businesses and companies increasingly give safety a nod, who are the beneficiaries? 

According to a study conducted by the Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences, graduates in Science with a background in occupational safety and health are increasingly flooding this field. 

The field presents many opportunities in fire risk assessment, hazard risk assessment, and occupational illnesses, among many other underpinnings that constitute safety discipline.

However, starting a career in safety can be challenging and requires patience. For instance, in Kenya, one needs a minimum certificate in OSH and five years of field experience in OSH to be a certified safety and Health advisor as per Section 10 of OSHA, 2007. 

The certification comes with many privileges. This should motivate young scholars to venture into Occupational Safety and Health Sciences. 

Internal Health Safety and Environment (HSE) is required to win lucrative tenders globally. Some companies will come to do HSE internal management systems before awarding a tender to your company. 

With this, many companies are taking no chances and are now hiring someone with background knowledge and skills in OSH sciences to oversee safety issues for the company. This should motivate scholars about sustainable opportunities in this field. Hence, I advise pursuing a career in occupational safety and health sciences.

Working as a safety manager or officer is a challenging endeavour, yet the satisfaction of looking after your team members’ health, safety and lives wear off the challenges. 

In most cases, you are rarely recognized by the management, often blamed in case of an incident, and you are looked down upon compared to the engineers and other operational teams. But you should learn to rise above all these negative forces and embrace safety as a humanitarian endeavour and the bulky future benefits in the field if you ever intend to have a successful occupational health and safety career.

When deciding which company to work for as safety personnel, please pay attention to whether the company indulges in safety to improve its internal systems and engineer a productive, safe work environment or avoid compliance penalties. 

If the latter prevails, you must evaluate job insecurity and low pay possibilities. Also, look at what the company is willing to pay its HSE professionals vs their operations people as a good indication of their commitment to safety. 

By Dennis Odhiambo, Health and Safety Officer, Burhani Engineers Ltd