Risk prevention and health promotion at work
It has always been the constant aim of the Port Authority to look after the health and safety of its employees, and to do so it has acted to respond to this objective, at times going beyond the requirements set by current legislation.
To reach this goal, ongoing action takes place to identify, assess and subsequently monitor workplace risks in the geographical area under the Port Authority’s control, an area that can be divided into three large blocks: the Inner Port, Outer Port (Langosteira) and the Navigation Aids System. Based on the results obtained, preventive and corrective actions are devised to eliminate or minimise exposure to the risks identified, by carrying out actions such as training, information and providing personal protective equipment.
However, the progress made would not have been possible without the invaluable cooperation and commitment of the men and woman on the Port Authority staff, which ranges from those responsible for drawing up and implementing the preventive measures to those for whom they are intended.
The efforts made for continuous improvement in workplace risk prevention led, in 2008, to the Port Authority considering it necessary to look in greater depth at its commitment to the physical and mental well-being of its staff. It was therefore essential to make an objective assessment and find out whether the Management System implemented was adequate or not. It made the decision to submit, voluntarily, to an external audit, which allowed to obtain and maintain the ISO 45001 certification.
Similarly, by committing to accepting and implementing the basic objectives of promoting workplace health and focusing its strategies on its principles, the Port Authority joined the Luxembourg Declaration, a consensus document establishing the basic principles for action and the frame of reference for good worker health management in companies.
Therefore, in line with the policy of the health authorities, of promoting and recommending the installation of semi-automatic defibrillators at certain facilities, this Port Authority has become a cardioprotective space, with two fixed defibrillators and eight mobile ones to cover the port area, and personnel properly trained to use these devices.