The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.
ABU DHABI / Emirates Business
The Abu Dhabi City Municipality (ADM) invited the attention of all owners of commercial, industrial and occupational facilities to the importance of complying with all health and occupational safety standards, warning them not use such facilities as accommodation.
The Municipality stressed the importance of removing unlicensed upper decks in commercial outlets and occupational facilities in line with the Municipality’s keenness to ensure workers’ safety, prevent accidents and injuries, provide adequate health conditions and maintain public health and safety in facilities fitted with upper decks.
The call is made in the context of the Municipality’s campaign targeting areas within the precincts of Al Wathba Municipal Center to ensure the commitment of commercial and occupational facilities as well as warehouses to provide decent living for their workers, and not use upper decks for lodging, sleeping or storing.
The campaign underscores the commitment of the Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport to provide the highest safety and security standards for all workers by providing decent living for workers, away from their workplaces. Compliance with such requirements would protect workers from dangers of workshops and occupational outlets, ensure compliance with environmental, health and safety standards, provide maximum safety at work and ensure global health and safety standards in this regard.
The Municipality stresses its ongoing keenness to foster partnership with the community through holding regular workshops targeting commercial and occupational outlets through introducing public safety & health laws, regulations and standards, and distributing awareness leaflets and guidelines about health, safety and environment standards.
Through Al Wathba Municipal Center, the Municipality has recently launched a campaign targeting a number of commercial and occupational outlets in different areas of the city. The inspection campaign resulted in serving 10 offences and 177 warnings, pursuant to Law No. 16/2009, which prohibits adding tools, equipment, or devices, making changes to decorations or facades of commercial establishments (such as chimneys, restaurants, gas cylinders, awnings, air conditioners, lighting works, and the like) without a permit, or using these overhead decks for lodging, sleeping or storing areas which fall short of safety requirements.
Offenders are offered a one-week grace period to redress the conditions and remove additions/causes of offences, in order to avoid possible legal proceedings, and recurrent violators will be served judicial transgressions. The Municipality will continue its inspection campaign to combat outlawed appurtenances, as well as disorderly and improvised additions, be it in villas, flats, residential & commercial buildings.
The Municipality called upon all those in charge of commercial and occupational outlets to attach utmost attention to safety and security requirements in these outlets. Upper decks are hazardous to the health and safety of workers if used as lodging. The Municipality renewed its commitment to provide precautionary measures that prevent accidents resulting from failing to comply with safety standards in such facilities.