SLSU Strengthens Safety Culture Through LUWAS SLSU for General Services Personnel
Southern Leyte State University (SLSU) reaffirms its commitment to workplace safety, employee welfare, and responsive campus operations through the conduct of LUWAS SLSU: Leading University Workers toward Awareness and Safety | A Basic Occupational Safety and Health Training for General Services Personnel on June 29, 2026, at the University Library Mini-Theater, SLSU – Sogod Campus.
Spearheaded by the Office of the Supervising Administrative Officer – Administration, the activity gathers General Services personnel from all six campuses of the University, including utility workers, drivers, electricians, air-conditioning technicians, carpenters, plumbers, farm workers, and other personnel involved in the day-to-day operations, maintenance, cleanliness, mobility, and safety of SLSU campuses.
The word “LUWAS”, a Cebuano term meaning “safe,” reflects the University’s continuing commitment to build a workplace culture where every worker is informed, protected, prepared, and empowered to contribute to a safer campus environment. More than a training title, LUWAS SLSU carries the University’s message that safety is not only a compliance requirement, but a shared institutional responsibility.
The training is organized in recognition of the critical role of General Services personnel in sustaining clean, functional, secure, accessible, and safe learning and working spaces. As the University continues to expand its academic, research, extension, production, auxiliary, and infrastructure-related operations, its General Services workforce remains at the frontline of campus functionality.
Their work, however, also exposes them to various occupational hazards, including slips, trips, and falls; electrical risks; chemical exposure; manual handling injuries; vehicular risks; heat stress; biological hazards; sharp objects; confined or elevated work areas; improper waste handling; and emergencies caused by fire, typhoons, earthquakes, flooding, and other disasters. These realities make Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) awareness essential not only for compliance, but also for prevention, preparedness, and protection.
The activity aims to equip General Services personnel with basic knowledge, skills, and awareness of OSH to promote safer, healthier, and more responsive workplace practices across all six campuses of SLSU. Specifically, the training seeks to strengthen the participants’ capacity to identify workplace hazards, assess risks, apply appropriate control measures, observe basic safety rules, use personal protective equipment properly, handle chemicals safely, and respond effectively to emergencies.
The training covers key OSH topics, including Introduction to Occupational Safety and Health; OSH System and Legislation in the Philippines; Administrative OSH Requirements; Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, and Control; Basic Safety Rules and Measures; Industrial Hygiene and Chemical Safety; Workplace Emergency Preparedness; Environmental Safety and Waste Management; and Overview of OSH in Construction Sites.
The sessions are facilitated by three resource persons from SLSU with relevant technical expertise in engineering, architecture, infrastructure, and safety-related work: Engr. Ryan A. Macuto, Project Development Officer III; Ar. Jeames Paul V. Evangelista, Project Development Officer II; and Engr. Kevin P. Oliveron, Project Development Officer II.
The program opens with the Welcome Remarks of Dr. Jude A. Duarte, University President, who underscores the importance of worker safety in sustaining quality public service and institutional operations. This is followed by the Statement of Purpose delivered by Mr. Leo A. Omamalin, Supervising Administrative Officer – Administration, who emphasizes that the activity is an expression of institutional care for the personnel who quietly keep the University moving every day.
In his message, Mr. Omamalin recalls a real workplace safety incident that occurs in January 2026, when one SLSU utility worker is bitten by a highly venomous cobra while cleaning a grassy area within the campus. The incident, he says, serves as a powerful reminder that workplace hazards are real and may happen even during ordinary daily tasks. Through timely communication, immediate response, evidence-based medical care, and institutional support, the worker survives the ordeal.
The experience highlights an important message at the heart of LUWAS SLSU: safety must not be treated as an afterthought. It must be embedded in daily work practices, institutional systems, and emergency response mechanisms. The incident also shows that prompt reporting, proper coordination, and decisive action can save lives.
The Introduction of Resource Persons is led by Ms. Judy O. Paz, Supervising Administrative Officer – Administration of Tomas Oppus Campus, while the activity concludes with the Closing Message of Dr. Christine Alma Mae M. Daguplo, Vice-President for Administration and Finance, who reaffirms the University’s commitment to strengthening workplace safety, protecting personnel, and promoting a culture of preparedness across all campuses.
Throughout the training, participants are encouraged to relate the discussions to their actual work settings – from maintenance and repair works to driving, groundskeeping, electrical works, plumbing, air-conditioning maintenance, waste handling, sanitation, and emergency response support. The activity provides a platform for practical learning, awareness-building, and shared reflection on the safety concerns encountered by General Services personnel in their respective campuses.
LUWAS SLSU is expected to contribute to improved safety awareness, reduced workplace risks, strengthened OSH compliance, enhanced emergency preparedness, improved environmental safety and waste management practices, safer maintenance and construction-related activities, and the development of a stronger safety culture within the University.
More importantly, the training recognizes General Services personnel not as invisible workers, but as safety frontliners and campus protectors. They are part of the reason classrooms remain clean, offices remain functional, grounds remain orderly, vehicles remain operational, and campuses remain serviceable for students, faculty, employees, and stakeholders.
As Southern Leyte State University continues to pursue excellence in public service, it also affirms that institutional progress must include the protection and empowerment of the people who sustain its daily operations.
Safety is not separate from work. Safety is part of work. Safety is protection. Safety is care.
Luwas kita diri sa SLSU.