CTC leads Asia-Pacific region in Work Place Health and Safety

By Darshana Abayasingha

The world’s most international tobacco group, British American Tobacco’s (BAT) century-old Sri Lanka operation took the lead for health and safety in the Asia-Pacific region marking 15 years of accident-free operations and no lost work days in March this year. 

Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Tobacco Company (CTC) aligns its Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) guidelines with the BAT Group, which encompasses a comprehensive suite of policies governing all aspects. However, Sri Lanka gains further special mention as it is one of the few markets with a fully-integrated seed to smoke operation, and is the only such market in the Asia-Pacific region to achieve this distinction in the present milieu.

As an organisation engaging in manufacturing activities, CTC says it is committed to providing a safe working environment for all its employees, suppliers and any person undertaking work on behalf of the company. When considering its complete eco-system, CTC’s EHS Manager Dimuthu Tharanga avers that the process presents numerous challenges and obstacles at various levels, but that the company was proud to set the benchmark across a diverse region. 

“Our EHS scope covers everyone. Even a visitor to the company, factory or field, contractors and the entire Supply Chain is included in our safety process. We are immensely proud as we are the only country in the Asia-Pacific region with a seed-to-smoke supply chain to achieve this standard. This is especially a challenge here in South Asia, as many of us tend to look at EHS as a hassle. In most other markets, developed markets in particular, people will not commence work without first ensuring their safety. These are aspects we need to be looking at, and we have done so here successfully. We need to develop safety as part of our work culture, and that automatically brings your even closer to productivity standards,” Tharanga advises. 

CTC’s last major incident took place in March 2003 in its Leaf Section, and Tharanga agrees that sectors such as field operations pose more challenges than others. The problem is impaired when it entails dealing with third parties such as contractors and farmers who offer little visibility and are difficult to control. However, the Company is committed maintain safety standards, and have delegated responsibilities to its Area Managers that all safety protocols are strictly adhered to. 

The governance structure also includes a cross-functional EHS Steering Committee which meets quarterly to monitor health and safety performance parameters and identify areas for continuous improvement. All employees undergo relevant health and safety related training on a regular basis, whilst compliance to the Company’s standards are also covered in collective agreements with trade unions.

“There are a lot of actions and governance behind our achievement. We are guided by the local regulations and in addition put in place BAT’s globally integrated EHS policy. Local rules are spelt out in the factory ordinance, and some of it are a bit dated and not implemented effectively by and large. There is a need to update them more frequently as advanced industrial nations do. BAT’s standards are much further ahead of existing regulations,” he adds. 

Does focus on Health and Safety compromise productivity and efficiency; no, states Tharanga, a point also underscored by Rukshan Gunataiaka, Supply Chain Director of CTC. “We see it the other way around. If someone were to suffer injury or discomfort whilst carrying out their tasks, then that is not real productivity or achievement. A safe workplace amplifies productivity and helps retention,” he adds. 

The CTC team is confident of maintaining its impeccable safety record for another decade and a half but admits that there is greater responsibility and onus placed on them higher up the ladder. However, they add that their task is made easier due to employees increasingly embracing an increased culture of safety and responsibility, whilst the Company will continue to impart further training to suppliers and other stakeholders as they do with employees. 

CTC also shares its best practices with other markets via regional forums, plus, gain from the different experiences in other markets around the world under the BAT umbrella. These learnings are also shared with other interested local institutions in order to proliferate a culture of safety. 

In addition to celebrating a year free of accidents, CTC also recently launched a mobile application within the company to report on Near Misses, and strengthened its plan to expand its EHS practices to its business partners. All employees are encouraged to report potential safety risks and hazards utilising mobile technology, which are actioned by the EHS Manager. 

The NEARMISS application will improve the convenience of reporting and increase efficiency of the process. Tailor-made advice is also offered to all employees on nutrition, healthy living and exercise plans at the company’s dedicated health and wellness centre. Having consistently demonstrated its ability to maintain an accident-free environment, CTC intends to go beyond zero accidents to eliminate even minor injuries such as scratches and bruises.