Ordinance mandating construction firms to provide safety officers revisited

April 4, 2022 Metro BLISTT

The City Engineering Office has proposed amendments to the city ordinance mandating all construction companies and contractors conducting business in the city to provide independent construction safety officers at the construction sites.
In his letter to the Baguio City Council, City Engineer Edgar Victorio Olpindo gave his comments and recommendations on certain provisions of Ordinance 3-2019 for the consideration and appropriate action of the council members.
Olpindo pointed out that designating an independent construction safety officer at the site entails an additional cost to the project since the rate for the said position is high. He then recommended that, for construction projects costing P1 million and above, the contractor shall be required to employ a full-time civil engineer who will serve as the safety officer tasked to supervise the project.
He said this arrangement is possible because most civil engineers nowadays have undertaken training in Construction Occupational Safety and Health. The designated civil engineer cum safety officer is neither the authorized managing officer nor the sustaining technical employee of the contractor.
The cost for the said position shall be included as one item cost of the project in the program of work. For construction projects costing less than P1 million, Olpindo suggested that the authorized managing officer or the sustaining technical employee of the contractor shall serve as the construction safety officer.
He said authorized managing officers and/or sustaining technical employees of all contractors are required to undergo 40 hours of training on Construction Occupational Safety Health, otherwise, contractors will not be issued a contractor’s license by the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board.
The cost for the authorized managing officer or the sustaining technical employee serving as the safety officer shall not be included as a separate item cost of the project in the program of work because it is treated as part of the mark-up cost of the project for the contractor.
Likewise, the city engineer suggested that, before the issuance of the Notice to Proceed for the project, the contractor shall be required to submit a construction health and safety program approved by the Department of Labor and Employment as well as a health and safety program for COVID-19 response and medical clearances during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ordinance seeks to ensure that construction companies comply with safety standards as required by law.
Based on the information gathered by the Legislative Monitoring and Evaluation Section of the Sangguniang Panglungsod, the ordinance is being implemented. However, Eliza Orduna, a tracking officer of the Sanggunian, noted in her report that the ordinance should be amended to incorporate the aforementioned recommendations.
Jordan G. Habbiling/ABN