Labour Day, observed annually on May 1, serves as a reminder of workers’ vital role in any economy. It’s a day to spotlight critical issues like fair wages, working hours, conditions, and overall worker well-being.
This year, Saint Lucia’s theme, Revolutionising health and safety: the role of AI and digitalisation at work, is timely, given the growing push for a technology-driven and technologically educated society. But while innovation is important, we must not overlook the fundamental issue: health and safety protections for all workers, not just some.
As Martin Luther King Jr once said, “All labour that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”
Yet in Saint Lucia, it often seems that only certain types of work are deemed worthy of proper safety measures.
Take garbage collectors – sanitation engineers, if you prefer. Their work undeniably uplifts humanity, so why are they treated with such indignity? Daily, we see them without masks, breathing in toxic fumes, lacking proper PPE (personal protective equipment), and handling waste with little to no protection.
Similarly, construction workers on World Bank-funded projects often have safety gear, while those on local sites work without helmets, vests or masks. COVID-19 should have taught us the importance of PPE and the dangers of respiratory hazards, yet these lessons remain ignored.
In many countries, masks are mandatory for food handlers, salon workers, medical staff and even police at crime scenes. In Saint Lucia, such measures are neglected, putting workers, and the public they serve, at risk.
Do we really need an AI app to enforce these basic protections? Or do we assume our workers are invincible and therefore immune to airborne toxins and injuries?
Saint Lucia has made progress in advancing the cause of workers, like abolishing discriminatory policies against unmarried pregnant teachers, allowing Rastafarians and people with dreadlocks to work freely, and, more recently, finally implementing a minimum wage.
But without prioritising universal health and safety, these gains are hollow. We will more than likely produce an unhealthy and unproductive workforce if this continues.
Another pressing issue is the “national crisis” of poor air quality and mould in workplaces – a problem we seem content to ignore. Must we wait for AI to tell us this requires urgent, systematic action or do we believe our workers are humanoids? The toll on workers’ health and productivity is already immense.
Last year, Ian Orton, a specialist in occupational safety and health (OSH), met senior OSH officials and the Labour Commissioner to address workplace safety concerns.
Discussions included reviewing national OSH policies and tackling mould. Yet with so many ongoing hazards, one wonders: What is the OSH Unit within the Labour Department actually doing?
The Labour Act outlines clear guidelines for workplace safety, assigning responsibilities to employers, employees, and contractors. But who enforces these rules? Who conducts regular inspections to ensure compliance?
As we approach Labour Day, let’s commit to better health, safety and working conditions for all workers, not just some. Employers must recognise this as a basic human right, and workers must demand nothing less.
