The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA)'s new report analyses the physical and psychosocial demands placed upon home carer, which it reported as one of the lowest-paid occupations in the European Union

William Cockburn, EU-OSHA's executive director, introduced the report. "Home care workers are the invisible backbone of our care systems. They support our most vulnerable citizens, yet they often do so under precarious working conditions.

"This report shows that with the right preventive strategies and initiatives, we can make home care work safer and healthier."

Common health problems reported as particularly common among home care workers included musculoskeletal disorders, often attributed to lifting and awkward postures required while at work, and mental health issues like stress and isolation.

The report is part of EU-OSHA's wider 'Health and social care and OSH' project, which is conducting research across the home care sector to spotlight the risk assessment and prevention gaps that have become commonplace.

EU-OSHA also commented on the sector's reliance on migrant workers, with this particular demographic at even greater of risk due to their often precarious employment and migration status.

The Board of Directors of Bahrain's Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) recently convened its regular meeting, chaired by His Excellency Yousif bin Abdul Hussain Khalaf, Minister of Labour and Minister of Legal Affairs. The session was attended by board members and Noubras Mohammed Talib, the LMRA's Chief Executive Officer.

A key focus of the meeting was reviewing the LMRA's ongoing efforts to implement strategic plans designed to strengthen the work environment and enhance regulatory and oversight efficiency.

These initiatives align closely with Bahrain's Government Programme (2023-2026) and the National Labour Market Plan (2023-2026), reflecting the Kingdom's commitment to fostering a balanced, flexible, and competitive labour market.

The board highlighted the LMRA's role in supporting economic growth by protecting the rights of both employers and employees, including national and expatriate workers.

By streamlining processes and integrating advanced digital tools, the authority aims to reduce labour disputes, improve transparency, and attract investment.

A significant portion of the discussion centred on updates to the enhanced Wage Protection System (WPS).

This upgraded electronic platform facilitates the timely payment of wages for both Bahraini and foreign workers through approved financial and banking institutions.

It enables seamless electronic transfers, ensuring compliance and accountability. The system particularly benefits employers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), by simplifying financial and administrative operations. It allows for efficient documentation of payments without requiring additional investments in separate systems.

This not only minimises delays and disputes but also promotes contractual stability in the private sector. Launched in collaboration with the Central Bank of Bahrain and partners like the Benefit Company, the enhanced WPS underscores Bahrain's position as a regional leader in labour rights protection. It reinforces investor confidence and contributes to a professional, stable workplace.

Overall, these developments demonstrate the LMRA's proactive approach to modernising Bahrain's labour market, ensuring fairness, efficiency, and sustainability for all stakeholders. As the Kingdom advances its economic vision, such reforms are poised to drive productivity and long-term growth. (Word count: 312)

Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine has won two energy industry awards for its next-generation industrial thermal insulative system Heat-Flex Advanced Energy Barrier (AEB), which not only offers excellent thermal efficiency but also eliminates costly and dangerous corrosion under insulation (CUI)

They include a 2025 Gulf Energy Information Excellence Award for Best Coating/Corrosion Advancement Technology and a 2025 Vaaler Award from Chemical Processing. The Gulf Energy Information Excellence Awards recognise the energy industry’s leading innovations and thought leaders, while the Vaaler Awards, established more than 50 years ago by Chemical Processing, recognise products and services that dramatically improve the operations and economics of chemical processing plants.

Heat-Flex AEB works by building a thick film of highly insulative material on to assets required to maintain operating temperatures up to 350°F (177°C), with excursions to 400°F (204°C). The thermal insulative system retains process heat inside the applied assets, allowing them to continue operating even in extreme environments. It also reduces burn risk for employees working in close proximity to hot assets.

The thermal insulative system rivals the in-service thermal performance of traditional mineral-based insulation systems, due to their tendency to absorb and trap moisture that infiltrates their exterior cladding. This moisture dramatically reduces the insulating capacity of the insulation and contributes to the acceleration of CUI. Heat-Flex AEB maintains thermal consistency and will remain at that same level of insulating capacity throughout its service life.

“We engineered Heat-Flex AEB to replace the bulky mineral-based insulation that’s traditionally used on storage tanks, process vessels, valves, fittings and piping to retain process heat,” said Neil Wilds, global product director, CUI/Testing, Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine.

“This replacement thereby removes the corrosion zone between traditional insulation and the substrate, eliminating the potential for CUI to form by default. Winning two big industry awards for the technology is a testament to the system’s ability to reduce costs associated with corrosion, improve carbon footprints and enhance efficiencies for operators in the energy industry.”

Traci Purdum, editor-in-chief of Chemical Processing said Sherwin Williams’ Heat-Flex AEB thermal insulative system “represents the kind of breakthrough thinking that not only solves today’s operational challenges but also sets new standards for safety, efficiency and sustainability in chemical processing.”