By: Joseph Jones

I welcome the acknowledgement of the St.Kitts-Nevis government to embark on the improvement of the occupational Safety and Health systems.

This is a topic which the St.Kitts-Nevis Trades and Labour Union plays a very important role in considering the conditions of their members (workers) at the workplaces. The aim is to prevent occupational accidents.

Workers, it is therefore essential to live with the right perspective (view) of having ‘The Awareness’. It is a fact that death follows life and thereafter comes judgment.

Workers are you listening to me? Because I am sure you are not hurry to leave this life. As the body is breaking down under stress with the weight of the years, will have to find a way to manage it. That is why I take time to write these articles; as I said before wisdom is calling out. It is not discernment raising its voice but on the heights along the road, it takes its position at the crossroads and take this seriously. At the entrances of the doorways it keeps crying out loudly.

Hello! Workers, can you hear it? Before I close, let me deal with “Noise”. Once again because you (the workers) are not listening and you are not reading. The level of ‘noise” has increased both at the workplaces eg. The airport. At work this is due to increased automation. Machinery has been made more efficient and work faster and so come the increasing noise level.

In a large open work premises is distributed unhindered and can in some cases even increase in intensity. Once you cannot hear, you area handicap. Therefore hearing is an important sense which helps us to establish contact with our surroundings.

If we lose our hearing or have it reduced, we will find if difficult to hear what your workmates are saying and difficult to listen to your radio or television. Workers, I hereby encourage you study the effects that reduced hearing or deafness. See some of the following consequences below:
(1) You find it difficult to understand normal speech and are disturbed by machinery or traffic.
(2) You find it difficult to understand what the supervisors are saying or make our sound signals
(3) You suffer from a feeling of isolation due to not being able to participate in discussion during work and also while having conversation with friends during time off
(4) You need more rest and relaxation than normal because workers (people) suffering from reduced hearing/deafness must often use all their energy to do their jobs.

****NOTE WELL****
No doctor can repair defenses so therefore it is important that you who spend plenty time in noisy environments be allowed to rest your ears by taking a break in quiet surroundings.

Until next week.

Thank you.