An Evaluation of Occupational Safety and Health Practices at the Bulawayo City Council

Abstract

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) non-compliance at the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) manifests in preventable workplace injuries, resulting in significant human suffering, avoidable financial costs and operational disruptions. Despite Zimbabwe’s enactment of the OSH Bill of 2025 and alignment with the International Labor Organization (ILO) Conventions C155 and C187, a critical implementation gap persists within public sector institutions. The study evaluated OSH compliance levels at the BCC, assessed factors influencing compliance, examined employees’ perceptions of safety practices and climate and developed evidence-based recommendations for enhancing compliance and reducing workplace injuries. A convergent parallel mixed-methods design was employed, grounded in the Systems Theory and the ILO OSH-Management System (OSH-MS) framework. Quantitative data were collected through a structured questionnaire administered to 362 employees across high-risk departments. Qualitative data were gathered through in-depth interviews with 14 key informants, including managers, safety officers and Worker Union representatives. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis and backward logistic regression were used for quantitative analysis while thematic analysis was applied to qualitative data. The median age of the respondents was 40 years (IQR 31-48), with males comprising 58.0%. The OSH Compliance and Governance Checklist revealed a foundational compliance rate of 84.6% with the Zimbabwe OSH Bill of 2025, yet highlighted critical partial compliance in data management systems OSH management system accreditation and dedicated OSH officer deployment. OSH risk awareness was the strongest independent predictor of compliance (AOR=2.04, 95% CI:1.24-3.35, p=0.005). Significant associations were found for human factors (adherence to OSH procedures OR=1.61, p=0.003; effective management communication OR=1.87, p=0.004), systemic factors (clear hazard reporting mechanism OR1.91,p=0.003), and resource-based factors(OSH budget sufficiency OR=2.08, p-0.017; adequate PPE provision )R 1.91, p=0.008; OSH Officer availability OR=1.87, p=0.021).Qualitative findings revealed systemic weaknesses in policy implementation, chronic resource constraints with procurement delays, reactive safety culture, OSH officers’ lack of enforcement authority and limited worker participation in safety governance. Key recommendations include institutionalizing comprehensive, department specific OSH training programs, strengthening worker participation mechanisms, establishing dedicated OSH budgets with streamlined procurement processes, implementing formal OSH management systems and empowering OSH officers with enforcement authority. These interventions aim to transform OSH from a statutory obligation into a lived reality for BCC employees, reducing workplace injuries and fostering a proactive preventative culture.