WORK HAZARD : Prof. Innocent Okunamiri, Reveals 2000 Workers Die Yearly,Urges NASS To Enact Safety ,Health Bill For Employers

National Assembly has been called upon to expedite action aimed at Enacting the long awaited Occupational Safety and Health Bills For Employers of Labour.

This Clarion call was made recently by a renowned Safety Expert, Professor Innocent Okunamiri.

Professor Okunamiri Delivered a zoom lecture on April 30, 2026, to mark the World Day For Safety At Work, with the Theme for Nigeria as, ” Commemorating Occupational Safety And Health”.

The event was organized by the Executive Director, Nigeria Employers Consultative Association, NECA, Mr. Adewale Smart Oyerinde.

Invited alongside Mrs.Florence Oghogho Owie, the Director of Factories, Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment,as Special guests,the erudite Scholar ,who presented a technical paper ,emphasized on the topic, “From compliance to commitment, Building A Sustainable Safety Culture At Work”, zeroed on the need to Build a sustainable safety cultures at work.

Explaining , Professor Okunamiri ,who is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Rifosons Nigeria Ltd,noted that “Safety is Everyone’s Business”.

He noted that no single person, department, or law can create a safe workplace alone, hence Compliance to safety guidelines keeps everyone out of court line , while Commitment brings people home.

Okunamiri,who is Eze Ndigbo and a traditional Igbo Leader in Ogun State, was the Former President, National Industrial Safety Council of Nigeria.

He however, regretted that the current safety system operating in the country was built on compliance, not commitment.

To buttress his points , the Former President Institute of Safety Professionals , cited the Factories Act of 1987, and the Factories Act 2004, which he said unfortunately covers only factories but excludes construction, agriculture, oil and gas companies.

According to him, “For decades, we have measured safety by checklists, fines, and PPE registers. Yet 2000 workers still die yearly”.

Drawing his audience attention, he asked, how do we move from ticking boxes to changing beliefs?. From FMLE enforcement to CEO ownership?. From paying for funerals to investing in prevention?.

Anchoring his professional view points on three highlights,such as :”why compliance alone failed in Nigeria. The 6 models that builds commitment – law, incentives, employers, professionals, unions and workers and the legislative and Policy actions you can take before we can achieve commitment”, he finally proposed a five-pillar framework for developing sustainable safety culture.

Such as “the meanings of compliance, commitment, sustainable safety culture, iii) Five pillar frameworks for building safety culture that lasts, iv) How to move from compliance to sustainable culture, v) Enforcement procedures to sustainable safety culture”.

Apportioning roles, Professor Okunamiri , enumerated how government can assist organizations to institute safety culture in Nigeria; Role of Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment ; Role of Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) ; Role of politicians and the national assembly and Role of professional bodies .

He also pointed out that NECA can assist its member companies to build a sustainable safety culture.

Meeting up with it’s sole Objective at the end of programme, Participants were equipped with practical strategies to move beyond basic compliance and build a strong, lasting safety culture within their organizations.

He noted that On Compliance, people are doing safety because they are obeying a rule, regulation, request or law. “Compliance gets you through an audit. You only want to conform to the laws, po
ds to avoid sanctions”.

The Scholar highlighted that Commitment, is a binding pledge, promise, or a dedication to be safe. ” It signifies intense dedication, loyalty, and the allocation of time or resources to a goal – Bring our people home safely from Work Sustainable Safety Culture. Doing safety because it’s who we are. A sustainable safety culture ensures safety is not what we do when someone is watching, but what we do because it’s how we work”.

Enjoining participants to embrace safety as a Culture, he said culture is” the shared, learned, and symbolic system of values, beliefs, traditions, behaviours, and material objects that define a group, society, or organization. Culture gets everyone home safe every day, even when no one is watching Safety culture is the shared values, beliefs, and behaviors that determine how safety is prioritized when no one is watching”.

Speaking on other highlights, the Professor, said that” Sustainability means it survives pressure, tight deadlines and changes .

In management , he added that Sustainability is achieved only when safety becomes embedded in operational routines and social norms, independent of supervision or regulatory pressure .

While at work, he said it is not just in Factories, Work is any place where people perform tasks for pay, purpose, or production.

“All we are saying is, if you are working, you deserve to be safe. That’s why our commitment must be at work – everywhere work happens”.

On Frame work for a Sustainable Safety, he opined that “Visible Leadership Commitment Culture flows from the top. Leaders must walk the floor in PPE, discuss safety first in every meeting, fund safety, and reward safe behavior.
If the CEO cuts corners, the culture is dead”.

He further lectured participants on the need for Employee Ownership and Involvement , because according to him,People support what they help create.

“Use safety committees, toolbox talks, and hazard hunts led by workers. Give “stop work authority” to everyone , from cleaner to HOD — with no victimization”.

Dishing out safety guidelines, he was of the views that Systems That Make Safety Easy ,”If safe behavior is hard, it won’t happen. Simplify permits, make PPE accessible, design for safety, and maintain equipment. Integrate safety into SOPs, not as a separate document”.

For him,Just and Learning Culture Move from “Who did it?” to “Why did it happen?”. Investigate near-misses.

” You must discipline reckless violations, but coach errors. Share lessons learned across all sites/departments. Continuous Measurement and Feedback. Don’t manage only lost-time injuries. Track leading indicators: % of toolbox talks done, hazards closed out, safety observations, training hours. Celebrate milestones — “365 days no LTI” — and feedback to staff”.

On enforcement procedures that build sustainable safety culture , he said “If your enforcement creates fear of reporting, you are building compliance, not culture.
publish reckless and repeated at risk behaviour. No discipline for reporting your own mistake or near-miss”.

“Be Consistent timely: any delay does not show you are serious. Let Proportionality be seen when you match punishment to Risk”, he advised .