Knowledge, Attitude and Practice Towards Occupational Health and Safety among Casual Workers at Kampala Capital City Authority.

Abstract

Introduction: Globally, more than160 million new cases of work-related diseases occur annually, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, cancer, hearing loss, musculoskeletal and reproductive disorders, mental and neurological illnesses, psychological disorders and 2 million people die every year resulting from occupational accidents and work related injuries. United Nations estimates 10,000,000 occupational disease cases occur each year globally, severity and frequency is greatest in developing countries. Meanwhile, the number of work accidents worldwide, fatal or non-fatal, is put at 270 million a year (WHO, 2010). Therefore, this study was set to determine the knowledge, attitude and practices related to occupational health and safety among casual workers at Kampala Capital City Authority. Methods: A cross-sectional study was done involving 286 causal workers at Kampala Capital City Authority who were mainly drainage desilters, street sweepers, garbage collectors and turn men. By use of non-random sampling procedures of purposive and convenience sampling; a semi structured questionnaire with both open and close ended questions was administer to the casual workers. Results: More than half of the casual laborers 217 (75.9%) were found to be knowledgeable on different aspects of occupational health and safety although the workers had limited knowledge on rights to OHS. Majority of the respondents 191 (66.8%) had a positive attitude towards OHS however, the actual practices of occupational health and safety among the workers was poor with majority of them not observing OHS guidelines so as to avoid hazards. Conclusions and recommendations: Therefore, there is need for continuous training and sensitization of workers at KCCA especially on the importance of reporting accidents and near accident experiences.