Labour officials are set to organise a special workshop highlighting safety guidelines for restaurants, following an incident in the country which left three people injured.
The Labour and Social Development Ministry’s online initiative, scheduled for later this month, will be facilitated by labour safety experts, alongside those from the Health Ministry and Civil Defence.
Labour and Social Development Ministry’s Labour Affairs assistant under-secretary Ahmed Al Hayki believes many of the incidents reported across the kingdom could have been prevented.
“Safety is important and our aim is to minimise such accidents,” Mr Al Hayki told the GDN.
“Most of the time we see that such accidents and incidents are preventable. It is everybody’s responsibility to ensure that we all do our best to prevent such mishaps.
“After the recent incident we decided to reiterate the safety requirements and standards to restaurant owners and managers. So we are organising an online workshop on the subject.”
The GDN reported that firemen dealt with an explosion at a restaurant in Hamala which resulted from a gas leak. Three employees at the restaurant were injured, received first aid at the site and later were referred to Salmaniya Medical Complex for further treatment. Police cited negligence in a gas cylinder connection as the reason for the blast.
“The online workshop on September 28 will be facilitated by experts from the Health Ministry and the Civil Defence,” said Mr Al Hayki.
“The attendees will be restaurant owners and managers, safety supervisors and heads of sections.
“The aim is to educate them on safety requirements, safety norms to be followed and what measures are needed to ensure the safety of their staff members and customers.
“Sometimes – not on purpose – but accidentally, people tend to overlook certain safety aspects which might prove expensive in case of an incident.
“So we will have experts speaking with examples to demonstrate on the necessity to follow safety guidelines.”
Mr Al Hayki also urged employees not to take safety guidelines lightly, adding that the workshop would be further extended to employees by their employers to avoid complacency in the workplace.
“The employees might be experts and feel comfortable in the space that they work in everyday and consider their jobs to be routine,” he explained.
“But it is always wise to understand the lurking dangers in every work zone and, when it comes to the kitchen of a restaurant, it is always ideal to carry out daily checks. The gas stoves, exhaust emissions, electric connections, fire extinguishers – all have to be constantly monitored.
“Other possible injuries could be from objects, slips, falls and burns – all of these are preventable if we are careful.
“While it is the owners’ responsibility to ensure these work spaces are in a good condition, it is for the employees’ to make sure that they carry out daily checks and use them in the right way.
“After the workshop, we will urge restaurant owners to further educate their employees.”
He also said that labour inspectors were out in force carrying out routine inspections to monitor that safety regulations were being adhered to.
“We are always inspecting and the labour inspectors are on the move, randomly checking eateries and coffee shops and even bigger outlets to monitor if safety regulations are implemented effectively.
“The pattern is just like what we do for construction worksites during the summer work ban.
“We are glad that almost all (restaurant and hotel) owners are very co-operative. Those who violate or ignore the measures will face legal action.”
In July a 44-year-old expatriate woman was killed and nine people were rescued by firemen following a massive blaze in a building in Sanabis which housed a sheesha café and multiple restaurants, among other outlets.
The GDN also reported earlier this year of 12 people sustaining burn injuries in a fire sparked by an explosion following a gas leak at Shishabi Restaurant and Café, Budaiya.
raji@gdn.com.bh
© Copyright 2020 www.gdnonline.com
Copyright 2020 Al Hilal Publishing and Marketing Group Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).
