[Source: AC]

The Ministry of Employment is set to implement amendments to the Health and Safety at Work (General Workplace Conditions) Regulations 2024.

Minister Agni Deo Singh says this will be done in response to the evolving business environment in Fiji.

The amendments are intended to enhance workplace safety while fostering business growth and job creation.

Singh reveals that the National Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Services have revealed that they lack the list of all businesses and workplaces that need inspection.

Current data indicates that only a small percentage of Fiji’s workplaces undergo safety inspections.

This issue, he says is compounded by the fact that updated records which are available with the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) and the Registrar of Companies are not shared with relevant agencies or made publicly accessible.

In 2018, the FRCS database listed 28,984 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and workplaces, a figure expected to have grown significantly since Fiji’s post-pandemic economic recovery.

Singh states that the Ministry acknowledges that OHS inspectors spend considerable time inspecting compliant businesses, time that could be better allocated to identifying and advising non-compliant workplaces.

The proposed regulatory amendments introduce a risk-based inspection system that categorizes workplaces as high or low risk.

High-risk workplaces which pose significant safety hazards, will be inspected annually, while low-risk workplaces will be inspected once every three years.

The amendments also grant the Chief Health and Safety Inspector the authority to reclassify low-risk workplaces as high-risk if non-compliance is detected.

These regulatory changes align with the broader government initiative to improve the ease of doing business, as led by the Ministry of Trade, Co-operatives, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Communications.

Singh says that the government recognizes that ensuring compliance with OHS regulations is essential to safeguarding human lives and maintaining a safe work environment.