Continuously working under harsh conditions can damage workers’ health in the long run. Effects of these work conditions can sometimes appear years after the course of work. As the human body can be quite fragile, these working conditions should be kept above the standards issued by the state authorities.In addition to the worker’s worsened physical condition, stressors can permanently damage the worker’s mental health. Worker rights are a sensitive matter for the most as the extent of a possible workplace accident can be on devastating levels. Employer’s contribution and intention to provide safety in the workplace has crucial importance.The absence of sufficient care in the workplace sooner or later ends up in unfavourable accidents. Although the majority of these work-related accidents only require temporary and short-term treatments, some others can decrease the worker’s capacity to work and perform daily tasks independently. As the possible difficulties after an accident are obvious, the laws strictly protect the workers by imposing strict and clear tasks on employers.Employers owe the duty of care to their workers. The extent of the duty of care contains the precautions that should be taken to avoid work accidents and being the main cause of an accident by neglecting the safety standards.
Risks in disorderly workplaces
Regardless of the sector, mess in the workplace can be harmfulto the workers. Especially in work environments in which numerous heavy equipment is involved. In construction yards, a lack of a sufficient number of storages can be the cause of an accident. Disorder in the workplaces conduces to slip, trip and fall accidents. Other than this, certain equipment and inflammable objects should be stored in safe storages. Once triggered, these explosives may cause blasts and kill or incapacitate the workers. Asbestos is another risk involved in disorderly workplaces. While performing certain operations such as pressure washing and sandblasting, the workers may contract asbestosis disease.For this reason, these operations should be performed in specially designed places.
Insufficient protective equipment
Not all equipment is suitable for the workers’ needs. Prior to appointing employees to perform certain tasks, the employer should make sure they are well equipped. For health workers, face masks are a must. As seen during the coronavirus pandemic, the health workers are in the highest risk group of virus exposure. Throughout their shifts, the health workers should be provided with sufficient protective equipment. Please note, these face masks have lifespans. This means, the protection capacity of the mask is to be decreased significantly once worn off. The same applies to construction, mine, manufactoryand certain public service workers. The respirator masks require regular replacements. These masks became useless after sometime and the worker will be vulnerable to infections. Breathing coal dust, asbestos, silica and other hazardous dust regularly is likely to cause permanent lung and airway diseases to the worker.
Inadequate training and assigning incorrect tasks
Certain equipment and machinery require a license to be operated. Among the employers’ duties, providing correct training and appointing competent employees to these tasks is crucially important. Employers might commit such action to cut the expenses of hiring a new worker. In fact, this is punishable by the laws. The use of work equipment without sufficient training involves obvious risk and the conclusions are quite foreseeable.
The employer’s duty is to minimise the natural risk factors whilst eliminating the human factor completely. The employer can contribute to safety in the workplace by following the duties imposed on them. If not, the employer’s negligence can be sued by the worker and the conclusions can be harsh.