St. John’s, Antigua: Employees of the High Court and Ministries of Legal Affairs and Finance, all located in the same area, have made complaints about their workplace making them ill, according to a report in the Antigua Observer.
Employees at the Ministries have complained of headaches, dizziness, difficulty breathing among other health issues which they have linked to the structural design of the building in which they work. One worker said employees have been experiencing the symptoms for some time but dismissed it as work/stress related. Both sets of workers determined the cause of their symptoms when workers at the adjacent High Court building began experiencing similar problems.
Findings of an inspection at the High Court, in October 2011, the revealed that ninety percent of the problems experienced by the staff were due to poor structural design, office lay out, cleaning procedures, improper storage and use of other physical and chemical agents, inappropriate handling of records and the lack of windows that can be opened.
According to the AO report fifteen recommendations were proposed to include retrofitting the building with windows that can be opened; the installation of individual A/C units for each office; the installation of extractor fans; the establishment of an electronic database to eliminate paperwork; and the discontinuance of cleaning during regular working hours.
Angry and disappointed workers said that they are forced to work in discomfort while they await health officials’ findings on the structural soundness and air quality in the building.
Upon request, this week, for an update from the Permanent Secretaries in the two Ministries, two employees were reportedly told that health officials have not released the findings of last year’s inspection.
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