 The COVID-19 pandemic has led governments, employers, workers and the general population to face unprecedented challenges in relation to workplace safety. April 28th is the day set aside to celebrate workplace health and safety. Osarege Obama reports. In 2003, the International Labor Organization, ILO, began to observe World Day for Workplace Health and Safety in order to stress the prevention of accidents and diseases at work. This is to create awareness for workers and promote conversations for safer workspaces. From challenges ranging from occupational hazards to employee welfare and the obligations of employers, governments have the responsibility of providing the infrastructure, laws and services necessary to ensure that workers remain employable and that enterprises flourish. The Niger Labor Act puts it that the employer has a duty to provide a safe working environment. What that means is that the environment must be safe, the tools that the employer uses to work does not expose them to hazard risk. Also, the employer must put in place insurance policies that will ensure that if there is a workplace accident, such employee who is involved in an accident must be taken care of. Also, there is the duty on the employer to ensure that there is continuous training, continuous enlightenment around safety rules, safety procedures and finally, the provision of personal protective equipment. But how much do Nigerian employees know about work safety and what more information is needed on labor laws? I would say that the awareness, like you rightly said, is on an average basis. So if you take a workplace that has about 20 employees, for example, maybe about five to eight of them will be aware of safety principles, safety measures and safety procedures. However, I will say that very few Nigerians are aware of their rights in terms of safety. That is not to say that they cannot demand for a safe working environment, but because their awareness is low, a lot of them cannot make those demands on their employers. The World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2021 will focus on strategies to strengthen national occupational safety and health systems to build resilience in order to face crisis now and in the future, drawing on lessons learned and experiences from the world of work. So you get notified about fresh news updates.