ENG-1998 — Page 181

EMPLOYMENT

health (OSH) practice in tertiary institutions, hospitals, and the banking, retailing and catering trades. A health and safety seminar on the new OSH Ordinance for Employees was held in July 1998. The council initiated and undertook several research projects on topics including: office ergonomics, safety climate, catering safety and health, safety and health problems for small and medium-sized enterprises in the non-industrial sector, and safety and health management system in the hotel industry. It continued to provide consultancy services, in particular for small establishments on a cost-recovery basis.

Services were made available and on high priority to small and medium-sized establishments. Among its initiatives to provide support to such enterprises, the council together with the Labour Department produced the OSH Bookshelf, which was a CD-ROM containing OSH information and publications. The safety auditing office continued to manage the Independent Safety Audit Scheme for government and Housing Authority construction projects.

To promote and facilitate benchmarking among organisations that wish to further enhance occupational safety and health, the Green Cross Group was formed on June 10, 1998. More than 300 corporations joined as member organisations forming an active OSH network across the territory. Quarterly newsletters were issued and experience-sharing activities were organised at regular intervals.

Campaigns to arouse public interest included the Occupational Safety and Health Week, which was held throughout the year. A highlight of this in 1998 was the OSH Equipment Trade Fair held in November, which displayed the latest manual-handling equipment and personal protective equipment. There was increased co-operation from district-based organisations in staging promotional activities. A special television mini-programme on OSH was produced and broadcast during the OSH Week and reached an audience of more than 1.5 million. Campaigns on different themes in support of the newly enacted Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance - such as fire safety, office safety, manual-handling and so on - were conducted throughout the year. Campaigns were also launched especially for civil servants to increase their awareness of office safety and health.

The council produced safety and health literature, codes of practice and guidebooks, a bi-monthly journal Green Cross, safety advice pamphlets, and posters and bulletins for individual industries. A comprehensive library with a collection of up-to-date videos, journals, microfilms, books and magazines on occupational safety and health is open for public use. The council's database can also be accessed via the fax-on-demand network and the Internet.

Employees' Compensation

The Employees' Compensation Division of the Labour Department administers the Employees' Compensation Ordinance, ensuring that injured employees and dependants of deceased employees obtain compensation from their employers for occupational diseases, injuries or deaths caused by accidents arising out of and in the course of employment. It also administers a scheme to provide interest-free loans to injured employees or dependants of deceased employees who need financial assistance as a result of a work-related accident.

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