~In collaboration with the Fire Department~
POINT BLANCHE, St. Maarten—Social corporate responsibility is important for Seven Seas Water, and as such the company gives special attention World Safety Day by hosting its own World week for Safety and Health which is observed in week 17 of this year. This year’s theme set by the International Labor Organization (ILO) is ‘Anticipate, prepare and respond to crises: Invest now in resilient occupational safety and health systems.’
“Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) could not let this opportunity go unnoticed since the company subscribes to its role as a conscientious corporate citizen with a high level of corporate social responsibilities,” said Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) Managing Director of Franklyn Richards.
With this in mind, Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) continues to engage in training of staff regarding occupational safety and health (OSH) systems, in order to face crises now and in the future, drawing on lessons learned and experiences from the world of work, said Richards.
The company considers adhering to a safe and healthy work culture an important aspect of its corporate responsibility and sees as benefits, among other things, greater productivity, higher performance and lower abstention rates at work.
Fire Department collaboration
To further promote safety and in giving true content to social corporate responsibility, Seven Seas Water decided to join forces with the St. Maarten Fire Department. Seven Seas Water and the Fire Department share similar social responsibilities with regard to promoting safety, creating safe conditions while at the same time protecting the environment.
“I have seen how the company is creating a safety culture, with having all participating into events like this, monthly safety meetings and all other online safety trainings,” said Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) Plant Manager Howard Rogers. Having worked for the company for 11 years, he spoke from experience when he said that, “Programs like this promote a safety culture in workplaces and adds a high level of importance on safety beliefs, values, and attitude.”
Head of Prevention, Preparation, Education and Training at the Fire Department Silvanico Pauletta expressed his support for the endeavors of Seven Seas Water to observe 2021 World Day for Safety and Health. “Businesses like Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) have the obligation and social responsibility to protect their environment and the health and safety of all stakeholders involved. This includes personnel, visitors and also the areas surrounding the business. This needs to be done to both prevent an accident from occurring and to mitigate the effects when an accident happens within your business,” said Pauletta.
Pauletta highlighted that even with preventive measures in place, there is always a chance that accidents can happen. “As a business, you need to prepare your facility and staff to act in such a way to limit the damage and injuries or even fatalities. This is why it is so important to have crises mitigative measures in place.”
“Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) is committed to safety and the execution of safe behaviors which determines the constantly improving safety culture the company so dearly holds,” stated Operations engineer and Site Safety Officer Tano Bergen. “Safety is determined by the sum of the individual contributions and not by intellect, positions or departments. Safety is for all and all should be for safety,” he added.
Seven Seas Water (St. Maarten) and the Fire Department together are producing a comprehensive, 15-minute video which will emphasize the committed approach to improving and instilling a safety culture at Seven Seas Water, while at the same time showing the importance of crisis preparedness and having a solid cooperation with a vital emergency response stakeholder like the Fire Department.
