CURRENT OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH PRACTICES WITHIN SELECTED BANKS IN NAKURU COUNTY, KENYA

The banking sector in Kenya has undergone an intense restructuring process and automation which has resulted in changes that reflect on the workers health. The increased number of customers requiring banking services in Kenya has seen rapid response by banks to expand in order to capture the emerging markets. The impact of this on occupational safety and health (OSH) status of the workers needs in Nakuru County has not been documented. The purpose of this study was to investigate the current occupational safety and health practices within the banking sector in Nakuru County, which is one of the most vibrant commercial hubs in Kenya, with an aim of establishing the OSH status of the banks. Subjects for the study included managers, officers, tellers, clerks, and sales representatives in banking institutions. Five banks; National bank, Barclays bank , Equity bank, Kenya Commercial bank and Standard chartered bank, which control over 95% of the banking industry were targeted. The study employed descriptive survey study design. The five banks were purposefully selected for this study due to the large number of workers with a workforce of 304 employees. Simple random sampling was used to obtain the representative sample. Primary data was collected using structured questionnaires while secondary data was collected from banks records. Obtained data was analyzed using descriptive statistics with the assistance of Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS version 21). The full regression model was used to identify elements of OSH practices which had significant relationship with the OSH status. Out of 172 sampled, 133 responded to the questionnaires, representing a response rate of 77.3%. The findings of the study showed that there were poor OSH practices within the banks in Kenya which mainly focused on income generation and less on workers? health and safety. The study has shown that there was lack of commitment to OSH as 40.6% of employees are not aware of existence of OSH policy in banks where 91.7% of employees work for more than 40 hours in a week. Similarly 63.2% of the respondents confirmed that rest breaks are not allowed, implying non conformity even with labor laws. These results have also shown that the employer has failed in his duty to provide training on OSH as 71.1% had not been trained on health and safety related issues. Further, it was established that at 95% level of confidence (p<0.05), OSH practices had statistically significant relationship with the current OSH status in the selected banks in Nakuru County The study recommends a strict supervision of the banks in terms of compliance to OSH and urgent training of both the managers and the workers.