Construction work has resumed at the Woermann Brock (WB) supermarket in Hochland Park, where activities were stopped late on Wednesday due to unsafe working conditions. 

A WB official yesterday told New Era the branch is being revamped to become the latest Woermann Fresh.

Moreover, a statement from an occupational health and safety inspector in the labour ministry noted that construction activities were given the go-ahead after further health and safety verification inspections. 

“Continuous monitoring will be carried out unannounced to ensure maintenance of good health standards,” the labour inspector stated.  

During initial inspections conducted on Tuesday, the ministry observed what it deemed “serious unsafe working practices and unsafe working environment that are in contravention with the Occupational Health and safety Regulations”. 

This working environment was considered unsafe by the labour inspector because Woermann Brock, as an employer,  required employees to work in the supermarket while major construction work was taking place. 

The inspector explained that WB allowed employees to work while wiring activities were taking place above their heads, and did not partition areas with high-risk activities, and allowed the public to enter the market during major construction.  The ministry then recommended remedial action to address non-compliance. 

“The ministry would like to reiterate that it remains a responsibility of each and every employer to account for its employees’ safety and health, and would continue to enforce applicable laws to employers who, in one way or the other, attempt to compromise safety and health of its workers,” the labour ministry stated.  In response, Woermann Brock general manager Braam van Niekerk said their Hochland Park branch is currently being revamped. “It was a Woermann Supermarket, and will be the latest Woermann Fresh when the renovations are complete at the end of August, which we look forward to very much. It is quite a large renovation, which requires a lot of construction. The store is currently closed, as all fridges and shelving will be removed and new equiptment installed from next week,” Van Niekerk stated.

He added that inspectors initially closed the store because contractors and Woermann Brock staff did not have all the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) as per requirements. He noted that the ministry authorised the resumption of construction after WB provided relevant staff with the compulsory equiptment.

“We have also given our staff currently in the store the masks and hard-hats. We have asked the ministry for a directive in relation to what they expect from us before opening the store again, and will ensure we implement and follow these guidelines to protect both staff and consumers before opening again,” Van Niekerk stated.