Navigating the health and safety legislation

Laura Atherton.

There are two major issues when dealing with health and safety in Dubai; the first is to obtain and understand the comprehensive set of obligations which Dubai law requires those working in the construction industry to comply with.

The second is the actual implementation on site of practices and procedures to ensure that these laws are adhered to. The latter has been the subject of much discussion in construction circles in Dubai and the talk is generally of the need to change the culture and attitude to health and safety on a number of construction sites.

However, this issue can only be tackled once the actual requirements that need to be complied with are fully understood - and having complete understanding of the relevant law is not as simple as it sounds.

A large part of the problem is getting on top of all the legislation available.

There is no one body or authority responsible for producing all of the relevant health and safety legislation for Dubai. In fact, there is health and safety legislation, guidance and other documentation produced at Emirate, Federal and GCC (international) level.

Even when just considering what is available at Emirate level, the law comes in many forms, Ministerial Orders and Regulations, Dubai Municipality Regulations, Technical Guidelines and Circulars. There are also safety manuals and documents of various status produced by entities like the Free Zone authorities and governmental organizations.

There are certain key pieces of legislation and guidance likely to be familiar to those working within the sphere of health and safety such as Federal Law No 8 of 1980 Part V (the Labour Law), Ministerial Order 32 of 1982 and the Dubai Municipality Code of Construction Safety Practice.

However, some of the applicable laws are far less well known. For example, did you know that Article 3 of Ministerial Order 44/1 of 1980 on the Inspection of Establishments requires that establishments need to be inspected periodically at least twice a year?

So what help or hope is there for the construction professional who wants to ensure that they are up to speed with all of the relevant health and safety legislation?

Well, there are currently two not-for-profit organisations who share information, best practice and provide support in order to raise the bar, and make Dubai a safer place to both work and live: IOSH and BuildSafe Dubai.

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