Impact of Prosecution on Compliance to Requirements of Safety and Health in Workplaces in Kenya

Abstract

Despite the presence of safety and health legislation, places of work in Kenya continue to have poor safety and health conditions and consequently there is continued accident occurrence. In 2007, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2007 (OSHA, 2007) replaced the Factories and Other Places of Work Act, Cap.514 which had been in existence for over five decades. The enactment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, 2007, has since not caused a notable impact on safety and health status in workplaces. Workers and employers continue to be unaware of existence of the Act and its provisions and therefore proceed to work in contravention of the requirements of the Act. The Directorate of Occupational Safety and Health Services (DOSHS) is charged with the responsibility of prosecuting those who contravene the provisions of OSHA, 2007. The Directorate also ensures safety and health of persons in workplaces by regular inspections and maintains records of such activities. This report details the outcome of delving into the impact prosecution under the provisions of OSHA, 2007 by the DOSHS, on the compliance to some aspects of safety and health of workplaces between October 2007 and December 2010. The research examined how the prosecutions influenced compliance to safety and health in workplaces on the aspect of workplace registration, risk assessment, safety and health audit and fire safety audit. The study involved perusal of records about workplaces that were inspected and subsequently prosecuted under the provisions of the Act. A comparison was then done between the status of compliance to selected aspects of safety and health of the workplaces before and after the proceedings to bring the impact to light. An interview schedule was administered to officers of xvii DOSHS office stations to gather information about the cases prosecuted and status of compliance thereafter. It emerged from the results of this study that prosecution in respect of selected aspects of safety and health yielded remarkable compliance. The outcome of this research would be useful in providing a way forward as to whether prosecution is a more appropriate approach in enhancing compliance to safety and health requirements in Kenyan workplaces.