ENG-1997 — Page 176

EMPLOYMENT

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industrial safety. It also helped the Construction Industry Training Authority run certificate courses for construction safety officers.

Boilers and Pressure Vessels Safety

The Boilers and Pressure Vessels Division administers the Boilers and Pressure Vessels Ordinance to ensure the safe use and operation of such equipment. The division conducts regular spot checks to ensure pressure equipment in use meets the required safety standards; investigates accidents involving pressure equipment; conducts examinations for the issue of certificates of competency to boiler and steam receiver attendants and promotes equipment safety through literature and seminars. It also gives the Fire Services Department technical advice on the approval and initial inspection of pressurised cylinders and storage installations for compressed gases.

The division processed 2 390 equipment registration applications, inspected 6 154 factories and 4 332 items of pressure equipment, and issued 488 certificates of competency and endorsements during the year. It also continued to assist the Haking Wong Technical Institute, Tsing Yi Technical College and the Occupational Safety and Health Council in organising training courses on the safe operation of pressure equipment. Two publicity safety seminars were held, attended by 270 people, and one safety training course was conducted.

Occupational Health and Hygiene

The Occupational Health Service of the Occupational Safety and Health Branch of the Labour Department provides an advisory service to the public and the government on workers' health and workplace hygiene, and supervise health standards and practices in workplaces. The service's major responsibility is to investigate complaints, occupational diseases notified and potential health hazards reported and to determine preventive action.

The service also undertakes medical examination of persons exposed to hazardous work such as ionising radiation and government employees engaged in diving, asbestos work and pest control. It runs an occupational health clinic providing consultative services to workers with work-related illnesses and provides medical support services for the recompression chamber. It also handles medical clearance for employees' compensation cases.

An enquiry service is available to the public on occupational health and hygiene problems. Talks on health education were provided on request. To supplement the recently enacted Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance and Regulation, a series of publicity booklets, guidelines, and codes of practice on occupational health and hygiene were published during the year.

Occupational Safety and Health Council

The Occupational Safety and Health Council aims to promote a safer and healthier working environment through education and training; promotion on the use of modern technology; dissemination of technical knowledge; provision of consultancy services; and encouragement of co-operation and communication among government and non-government bodies with similar goals. The council, a statutory body, is financed by a levy on the premium of employees' compensation insurance policies in Hong Kong.