Economic progress, development in the IT and logistic, regulatory strategies, government policies have brought significant changes in the way organization works. The competition is not only with the rival products but also how efficient your supply chain is? Companies are trying different strategies on the supply chain to beat the competition, improve their profitability and make dominance in the market. Therefore, the question of what happens to the health and safety of the employees affected by these strategies has become a major concern across the world. The occupational safety and health risk are often associated with the lack of knowledge regarding the use of the product and exposure to certain hazards.
Companies are working to improve their occupational health and safety policies. Hindustan Unilever is one of the leading FMCG company has launched an initiative to educate their female employees, under this initiative the company will provide psychological counseling and supported helpline, awareness generation training. Alongside the 2,800 women employees, the initiative will also cover 100,000 women working across the companies supply chain.
Transport plays a major role in any company’s supply chain. Indian road is considered the second busiest road network in the world and transports 980 million tons of cargo annually. All India Transporters Welfare Association has launched India’s first “lawyer on-the-spot” program. The program will assist the driver, by providing them with immediate legal representative and education on basic rights and procedures and this association has tied up with one of the legal tech platforms.
Gurugram based industrial belt is engaged in supplying automobile parts to major automobile companies in India; Honda motorcycle & scooter Pvt Ltd, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. A report “crushed” conducted by Safe in India (SII) foundation reveals that more than a thousand workers got injured over the period of 2 years due to the malfunctioning of safety sensor. Our Organization has come across thousands of workers who have lost their hands or fingers in the auto sector supply chain and the situation is much worse than these numbers, said Sandeep Sachdev, co-founder, and CEO, SII.
The safety and health of workers should be the priority of any organization. There is no squabble on the need for effective and constructive business risk management, including health and safety in supply chain management. Small enterprises should pay more attention to the safety and health of their employees. There should be more awareness programs, proper education, and training given to the workers. By doing this, it will ensure that through consistent and concerted efforts, businesses will continue to help reduce ill health, accidents, and loss of life.