The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (MIVHED) also reported last week that, after inspecting 121 construction projects in the Dominican capital, it found violations of building regulations in 40 of them.
SANTO DOMINGO – The government of President Luis Abinader has launched a campaign of inspections of private construction projects underway in the National District. In recent hours, two state entities have reported safety violations and breaches of regulations during the construction process of real estate projects.
Last Thursday, the 4th, the Ministry of Housing, Habitat and Buildings ( Mivhed ) reported that through its Directorate of Inspection of Works , it supervised 121 works in the National District to verify compliance with protection measures in excavations , where it found that 81 of the works comply with the current regulations while another 40 were notified for partial or total non-compliance.
Yesterday, Sunday, September 7, the Ministry of Labor reported that during special operations in construction sectors of the National District, 15 construction projects were halted due to a lack of safety and health regulations that endangered the physical integrity of the workers.
As a result of the inspection days, the agency explained, 380 reports , of which 304 are warnings or notices about non-compliance and 76 are for infractions safety and health committee , absence of signage , failure to provide personal protective equipment , lack of first aid kits and absence of fire extinguishers.
"Regarding violations of the Labor Code , these include the lack of a permanent staff payroll and making it visible; presentation of the payroll for mobile or occasional staff, nationalization of labor, payment of the legal minimum wage, non-payment of vacations, extraordinary salary and lack of a visitor book," the ministry stated in a press release.
He argued that the operations, carried out in 41 companies , respond to the commitment of the Ministry of Labor to guarantee the safety and health of workers in the construction sector .
Eddy Olivares
The Minister of Labor, Eddy Olivares , stated that construction workers and those in the surrounding area where the towers are being built must have safety measures in place, and the way to achieve this is by using the necessary equipment to prevent any type of accident.
He noted that the inspections are intended to raise awareness and encourage builders to strictly comply with the regulations governing safety and health in construction, as well as workers' rights .
He valued and welcomed the decision of the Dominican Association of Housing Builders and Promoters (Acoprovi) for its willingness to ensure compliance with safety and health in construction works and to bring workers into the formal sector .
Worker falls
Nicaury de la Cruz , coordinator of the inspection operations, explained that during the supervision of one of the towers, a worker fell , without serious injuries, due to not having the safety equipment, thus demonstrating the importance of applying Regulation 522-06, Resolution 04-07, the Labor Code, the Constitution of the Republic and the agreements with the International Labor Organization (ILO).
In that regard, Héctor Romero , coordinator of Hygiene and Safety, pointed out that, according to the aforementioned regulation, the employer's obligation to protect the worker from occupational risks was not being met.
He added: " The buildings did not have lifelines , the workers did not have the necessary protective equipment for their work, and there were no danger signs in the area."
In addition, he indicated that they did not have first aid kits , the stairs had inadequate railings , the perimeter of the tower did not have a fall protection railing, and the elevator shafts were open.
Regulations
The Ministry of Labor recalled that Regulation 522-06 empowers the Labor Inspector to necessary measures , including the cessation of activities, safety and health of workers
According to Convention 81 , in its article 13, labour inspectors are empowered to take measures to eliminate defects observed in the installation , assembly or working methods which, in their opinion, reasonably constitute a danger to the health or safety of workers.
The Ministry of Labor is the highest administrative authority in all matters relating to maintaining normality in production activities in the Dominican Republic, a role it exercises through the Directorate of Inspection , which has the legal power to enter any company or establishment.
