The World Health Organization (WHO) congratulates the Philippine government for passing the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Act or the Republic Act (RA) 11058. Once implemented, this significant legislation will help curb the increasing cases of diseases and injuries in the work environment that confront the country.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the total cases of occupational diseases in workplaces reached over 125,000 in 2015. Back pain is the most common type of occupational disease, making up 32.8% of the reported cases. This is followed by essential hypertension (11.5%) and neck and shoulder pain (11.4%). Meanwhile, the most risky industry for workers was found to be in administrative and support service activities (34.3%) and manufacturing industry (31.1%), jointly comprising almost two thirds of the total cases of occupational diseases in 2015.
With the RA 11058, employers are now required to comply with occupational safety and health standards including informing workers on all types of hazards in the workplace and having the right to refuse unsafe work, as well as providing facilities and personal protective equipment for the workers, among others.
With this law, the Philippines comes closer to achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 8.8 to protect the labour rights and promote safe and secure working environments for all workers. It also boosts the implementation of the WHO-supported Occupational Health and Safety Sector Plan under the National Environmental Health Action Plan (2017-2022).
WHO commends the efforts of all stakeholders who supported the passage of this law to protect the health of workers in the Philippines.