Regina Otokpa 
…says oil, and gas activities heighten environmental degradation
In renewed efforts to protect the mental health of workers, and control the impact of climate change vis-a-vis, environmental degradation, the Solidarity Centre West Africa, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and other partners have launched a campaign to address the worsening state of heat stress experienced by workers.
This came as the Unionists sought a review of Section 5 of the Climate Change Act, to allow for the inclusion of workers’ representatives in the National Council on Climate Change, with the view that climate change was a workplace issue.
Titled “Stop the Heat Stress,” the campaign would be driven by advocacy visits to state and non-state actors, and street rallies amongst other activities, to create more awareness of the implications of environmental degradation on the occupational health and safety of workers, especially outdoor workers in locations such as construction sites, oil fields etc.
The Country Programme Director, Solidarity Centre West Africa, Deddeh Tulay who spoke at the campaign launch in Abuja, disclosed that the campaign had become necessary, following findings from a nationwide comprehensive research to unravel the impact of climate change in workplaces.
Represented by Senior Programme Officer Solidarity Centre, Bashman Mohammed, he explained that because climate change was found to be more of a workplace issue, the campaign was broadened to involve the government, Trade Unions and Civil Society Organisations to contribute their quota and ensure prompt implementation of existing policies on occupational health and safety of workers in Nigeria.
He said: “It has been established by research that climate change is mostly brought about by human activities and industrial activities is one of such. For example, in the oil and gas industry, we have seen the mode of production and even on the offshore, we have seen the increasing temperature because of the climate change and so the heat coming from it is affecting the waters and is causing heat stress.
“The ILO has identified that over 50 per cent of the world’s working population is affected by this. There is an interconnection between the production pattern or model we are using and the heat that workers especially those working in production sites, oil and gas are being impacted with.
“That is why we thought a good starting point should be a campaign to stop the heat stress caused by heat waves.”
Senior Assistant General Secretary of the NLC, Comrade Eustace James noted that the campaign would be championed by trade unions and other partners cutting across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), CSOs, environmentalists as well as the academia.
According to him, the campaign was key to promoting environmental justice, promoting occupational health and safety and a safe working environment for Nigerian workers and Nigerians in general.
“The campaign is being built on findings from research that was commissioned by the Solidarity Centre, an arm of the AF-CLO, the biggest trade union centre in the United States that provides support to trade unions across the globe.
“The findings have been examined and analysed with the resolve that the findings are key and can form an advocacy act for us to go on further.
“The campaign will involve a lot of activities that will include advocacy visits to relevant stakeholders, street rallies amongst other activities that will ensure that the message is out there because global warming is real and we can’t run from it.
“Findings showed that human activities especially around the oil and gas industry are contributing fast to environmental degradation and this has to be critically looked at, especially with regard to how work is being done
“Another finding is there is little or no awareness on the part of the worker of the impact of their work on the environment that is contributing to environmental degradation and to deal with this, we will have to intensify education and training the workers on their impact on the environment and how to deal with environmental degradation.”
Comrade James who further warned that heat stress could affect the mental health of workers, added that the NLC would continue to be a Vanguard for occupational health and safety in Nigeria, as it was committed to safeguarding the physical and mental wellbeing of workers in the country.
“Environmental degradation and environmental hazards contribute seriously to mental health. There are a number of health hazards at workplaces that may not be very obvious including mental health. Mental health does not necessarily mean unless a person is mentally deranged, anything that puts stress constitutes mental health and the heat wave is one such.
“Hear wave makes you very uncomfortable at workplaces and even the reasoning faculty is affected which is one of the issues when you are talking about mental health. “
