Student Number : 0215978H -
MPh research report -
School of Public Health -
Faculty of Health Sciences / The study was conducted in the City of Mbabane and assessed Occupational
Health and Safety in the informal car maintenance, welding and spray-painting
industry. The objective of the study was to assess the risks workers are exposed
to in the informal car maintenance, welding and spray-painting industry in
Mbabane city in Swaziland. Data was collected by administration of a
questionnaire to managers of the establishments and by personal observations
of workers while on the job from walk through surveys that were conducted in the
city.
Seventy (70) workplaces were identified and sixty five (65) of them participated in
the study, representing a response rate of 92.86%. There were twenty (20)
workplaces doing car maintenance, twenty five (25) doing welding and twenty
(20) doing spray painting. Fifty-three (53)
The data was analysed using the EPI INFO software and results revealed that
most workers in this sector were indeed at high risk of exposure to occupational
health and safety problems. They worked under unfavourable conditions such as
working in the open and subjected to adverse weather conditions, exposed to
solvents, welding fumes and gases, strenuous work, improper postures, lifting
heavy loads, exposed to spray painting aerosols and fumes and exposed to dust.
The workers’ occupational health and safety was made worse by the fact that
most of them did not have or use personal protective equipment.
90% of the workers were exposed to emissions while carrying out their jobs of
spray painting and 10% of them were exposed to paint.
All the workers that were doing spray painting were exposed to paint (95%) and
solvents 5%).
Although 75% of the workers, doing spray painting had some kind of personal
protection provided however the usage rate was very low.
In all the workplaces that were doing spray painting, there were no other existing
control measures for protecting the workers from paint emissions
76% did not have any respiratory protection. However, only 33.3% of them were
using the PPE provided and 66.7% were not using them. Therefore most of the
workers were at risk of breathing in welding fumes and other welding related
gases. This means 92 % of workers were at risk to welding fumes and gases.
68% of the workers did not have protection for the hands, only 32% had. Those
workers that had hand protection (32%) had gloves with shorter cuffs and
separate sleeves (12%). Others had leather gauntlet gloves with canvas or cuffs
(20%). 75% of these workers who had PPE were not using them, only 25% did.
Since most of the workers did not use hand protection, this means that their
hands were not protected against heat, spatter, and radiation.
Most of the workers (72%) did not wear eye protection when removing slag and
that put them at risk of eye injuries.
All welding operations were not done in a booth. This means that the workers
and co-workers were at risk of exposure to welding gases and fumes.
48% of the workplaces had their surroundings with materials that could catch fire.
52% had their surroundings free from burnable material. Therefore almost half of
the workplaces were at risk of catching fire.
76% of the working places had no fire extinguishers. Only 24% had fire
extinguishers, but only two had been serviced accordingly. The workplaces were
less prepared for outbreaks of fire. 68% of the workers took no precautions against burns; they had their sleeves
rolled up and forearms without gloves or sleeves when carrying out their work.
Only 32% of the workers took precautions against burns.
72% of the workers said that they did not know how to treat burns. Only 28%
said they knew how to treat them.
72% of the workplaces did not have first aid kits. The means that they were not
prepared for accident, only 28% had first aid kits.
71.4% of the work places had first aid kits without the necessary medicines,
bandages, and equipment, only 28.6% had. This indicated a lack of
preparedness for accidents on their part.
A long-term strategy should be developed aimed at improving the occupational
health and safety of the workers. Workers need to be empowered to perform
their tasks safely. Workers and owners of informal industries should participate in
the formulation of interventions aimed at improving occupational health and
safety. The City Council should provide health and safety education and training
to the Informal Sector.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:wits/oai:wiredspace.wits.ac.za:10539/2045 |
| Date | 19 February 2007 |
| Creators | Mamba, Richard Mfana |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 88990 bytes, 14500 bytes, 18507 bytes, 13165 bytes, 418124 bytes, 14769 bytes, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf, application/pdf |
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