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Following is the speech by the Secretary for the Civil Service, Mr Joseph WP Wong, at the Experience Sharing Seminar on the Implementation of Safety Management System today (October 2):

Dr Ng, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen,

On behalf of the Civil Service Bureau, I would like to welcome you all to this Experience Sharing Seminar on the Implementation of Safety Management System. I would also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the participating departments, the Occupational Safety and Health Council (OSHC), the China Light and Power Hong Kong Limited, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation Limited and the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited whose enthusiastic support for this seminar is most encouraging.

To any organisation, staff is the most valuable asset. As the largest employer in Hong Kong, the SAR Government has all along attached great importance to the safety and health of its staff. Back in 1996, the Working Group on Occupational Safety and Health in the Civil Service was set up by the Civil Service Bureau, comprising members from the four central consultative councils, with the objective of motivating joint efforts of the management and staff sides to inculcate an occupational safety and health (OSH) culture in the civil service and enhance civil servants' awareness of the subject through various educational and publicity programmes.

In the past few years, we have organised various types of activities to promote OSH among civil servants. Examples are talks on "Stress Management" and "Indoor Air Quality in Office Environment", seminars and exhibitions on "Safety and Health in the Offices", and experience sharing sessions and workshops aiming at improving the OSH standards in government departments.

To help civil servants cope with the stress arising from work and other personal problems, we launched a two-year pilot scheme in 1999, during which counselling service was provided for staff by professional agencies. In view of the success of the pilot scheme, we continue to run a hotline counselling service on stress management for civil servants this year. The service caters for more than 70 000 staff members in 70 bureaux and departments, offering them advice regarding the ways to deal with work pressure. Departments which do not participate in the scheme, such as the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, the Hong Kong Police Force, the Housing Department and the Social Welfare Department are already providing similar service for their staff.

To raise the standard of OSH in departments, we encourage them to implement the safety management system (SMS). In a pilot scheme launched in 1999, we engaged the OSHC to assist the Environmental Protection Department and the Water Supplies Department to establish their SMS. We hope that the experience of these two departments can be shared by others in fostering a culture and a system of safety management. The Environmental Protection Department successfully established its SMS last year and was awarded a certificate of commendation by the OSHC. This year, the Water Supplies Department wins the same commendation and the certificate will be presented by Dr Ng Tat-lun, Chairman of the OSHC, in recognition of its achievement in implementing the SMS. I shall also like to take this opportunity to thank the OSHC for its continued support and assistance, which have proved so helpful in our OSH projects.

Today, apart from colleagues from various departments, representatives from the China Light and Power Hong Kong Limited, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation Limited and the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited will also share with us their experiences in OSH promotion. Their participation reflects the importance attached by various sectors of the community on the issue.

I would like to ask all of you to bring back to your organisations and departments what you learn from this seminar and to contribute to the cooperation between the management and staff sides in promoting OSH. In this way, all of us can have a healthier and happier working environment and we shall also contribute to making Hong Kong a dynamic and energetic city. May I wish this seminar every success.

Thank you.

End/Wednesday, October 2, 2002

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