Determining the Occupational Health and Safety of Workers in The Food Manufacturing Sector of Pakistan

Background: For organizations, conducting work in a safe environment has become mandatory under the provisions and guidelines provided by international and local laws. Occupational health and safety (OHS) standards have become a requisite in almost every industry these days; however, many organizations in developing countries are negligent at adhering to the safety measures, and there is also an absence of proper monitoring. Objective: Our objective was to determine the occupational health and safety standards that are prevailing in the food manufacturing sector of Pakistan. For this, we approached several food manufacturing companies and conducted interviews with quality assurance managers and health and safety executives to evaluate and analyze the workplace conditions to understand their OHS practices. Methods: We conducted 7 interviews with quality assurance managers in the food manufacturing and services companies of Pakistan. The interview guide was used for eliciting responses and a coding method was used to arrive at the themes of the data gathered. Results: The interviews conducted with quality assurance managers and those working to ensure that safety measures are practiced in their company, showed that the export-oriented food manufacturing companies in Pakistan are following OHS standards, as it has become a necessity, with numerous benefits such as ensuring worker safety, maintaining company reputation. However, the extent to which these measures are implemented and strictly followed varies, as there are certain issues that arise when companies try to follow and implement OHS practices The problems vary from company to company however, most of them relate to worker adaptability, costs, and training needs.  OHS situation in local firms is concerning. Most of them do not have HSE officers, not the concept of toolbox talk, no preventive and safety measures.  These poor practices make the situation unsafe, which lead to fatalities Conclusion: By establishing a national framework for policies and legislations as per the conventions of ILO for a better workplace environment along with proper law enforcement improvement in occupational health and safety domain can be achieved.      

An Exploratory Study of Grade 10 Students Perspectives on Making Learning of Biology Effective

This study aimed to explore Grade 10 students' perspectives concerning the biology topics that they find the most difficult to learn, the reasons of experiencing difficulties in learning biology, and ways to overcome the difficulties. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative approaches. A survey tool difficulties and effectiveness in Learning Biology questionnaire (DELBQ) was adapted from the literature which has already been used in other context in a similar study (Cimer, 2012). 132 Grade 10 students participated in the cross-sectional survey including girls (n=86; 65%) and boys (n=46; 35%). The sample was recruited from 10 public schools of district Hunza. DELBQ was directly administered to all participants. The results showed that students have identified five concepts of biology - genetic engineering (37%), cell division (31%), Mendel principles and application (28%), defense and immunity (23%) and matter cycle (17%) - as the most difficult concepts to learn. The students proposed multiple reasons to learning hindrances which include: the nature of the topic, teachers' teaching method, students' learning techniques, students' attitudes towards the topics and deficiency of resources and time. Prominently, of five the themes 'the nature of the topic' was found to be the most repeatedly cited reason (99) for difficulty in learning biology. Students have not only identified these hindering factors of learning they have talked about viable suggestions to improve learning of the subject such as reducing the subject content; using visual aids in teaching ; teaching through experiments; students using various study techniques; making biology teaching interesting and effective; and, teaching biology by connecting the topics with daily life. Interestingly, a majority of responses (99) highlighted 'the nature of topic' as one of the primary reasons for making biology learning difficult; however, the suggestions to enhance learning were predominantly related to either 'students' own learning habits' (148) or 'teachers' teaching style' (127). The study provides an insight into 'students' voices' not only in identifying the 'difficult areas in Biology' but highlighting perspectives in explaining the 'reasons for difficulties in learning these concepts' and potential strategies to improve learning. The results could be useful for practitioners and policy-makers in enhancing curriculum and classroom practices to make this fundamentally important subject interesting for students. The tool adapted for the study is a valuable addition to the indigenous literature which can be used by the other researchers in the field to conduct large scale studies.