Macao's labor bureau chief calls for saving lives at work

New technologies and new work procedures have given rise to new hazards and risks of accidents and diseases, which have resulted in great increases in the numberof people being killed and injured at work, said Macao's labor bureau chief at an international conference.

Speaking at the International Association of Labor Inspection'sfirst meeting held in the Asian region on Wednesday, Shuen Ka Hung,director of the Macao Labor Affairs Bureau said that economic growth in most countries in Asia and the Pacific, the fastest growing region in the world, is opening up new opportunities for improving the quality of working life. However, occupational safety and health is emerging as an important concern in the region.

Shuen said at the International Conference on Safety and Health,which closed here Wednesday that accidents rate remains particularly high in the construction industry, which usually employs nearly 10 percent of workers in most countries.

He considered that the prevailing contract system, unstable employment and the large number of seasonal and migrant workers contribute to safety and health problems in the construction sector.

Shuen told over 100 participants from 20 countries and regions as well as international labor organizations to the meeting that Macao is experiencing an economic transition. There is an immense expansion in the tourism industry, which is followed by development in the construction industry. The construction boom has boosted the demand for an increasing number of migrant force from China's mainland.

Macao has invited senior labor affairs officials from the Pan-Pearl River Delta Region (Pan-PRD) to the meeting. A framework agreement on enhancing all-round cooperation in the Pan-PRD regionwas signed earlier this year among "9+2" members in the region, which include Guangdong and Hainan provinces and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in south China, Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan provinces in southwest China, Hunan Province in central China, Jiangxi and Fujian provinces in east China, and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions. The cooperation is expected to substantially increase personnel flows in the region.

Source: Xinhua