A. Introduction

1. In accordance with article 7 of the Standing Orders, the Conference set up a Committee to consider and report on item III on the agenda: "Information and reports on the application of Conventions and Recommendations". The Committee was composed of 246 members (130 Government members, 23 Employer members and 93 Worker members). It also included 9 Government deputy members, 73 Employer deputy members, and 136 Worker deputy members. In addition, 24 international non-governmental organizations were represented by observers.(Endnote_1)

5. In accordance with its usual practice, the Committee began its work with a discussion on general aspects of the application of Conventions and Recommendations and the discharge by member States of standards-related obligations under the ILO Constitution. In this part of the general discussion, reference was made to Part One of the report of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations and to the information document on ratifications and standards-related activities. During the first part of the general discussion, the Committee also considered its working methods with reference being made to a document submitted to the Committee for this purpose. (Endnote_4) A summary of this part of the general discussion is found under relevant headings in sections A, B and C of Part One of this report.

18. The Chairperson announced, in accordance with Part V(E) of document D.1, the time limits for speeches made before the Committee. These time limits were established in consultation with the Vice-Chairpersons and it was the Chairperson's intention to strictly enforce them in the interest of the work of the Committee. The Chairperson also called on the members of the Committee to make every effort so that sessions started on time and the working schedule was respected. Finally, the Chairperson recalled that all delegates were under the obligation to abide by parliamentary language. Interventions should be relevant to the subject under discussion and be within the boundaries of respect and decorum.

General aspects of the supervisory procedure

26. First of all, the representative of the Secretary-General pointed out that this Committee had the overall responsibility for considering the extent to which international labour standards were being implemented and reporting thereon to the Conference. With this overall objective in mind, this Committee had adapted its methods of work over the years, as and when important issues arose, notably at the initiative of its members, on the basis of tripartite dialogue and consensus. The achievements of the Tripartite Working Group on the Working Methods of the Conference Committee were the result of this process. Since its establishment in June 2006, the Tripartite Working Group held a total of six meetings during the course of which it successfully dealt with all issues before it. The recommendations of the Tripartite Working Group, which were summarized in document D.1, should continue to enhance the functioning of the Committee on the Application of Standards.

- Convention No. 98 on the right to organize and collective bargaining: As this fundamental and widely ratified Convention completed 60 years of existence, it was right and proper to emphasize its relevance not only to the great majority of countries which had embraced its principles, but also to the recovery from the current crisis as it allowed the social partners who were directly concerned by the problems which arose in the world of work and who had moreover, a deep knowledge of the relevant context, to reach free and voluntary solutions.

- Convention No. 182 on the worst forms of child labour, a fundamental Convention which was the most rapidly ratified instrument in the history of the ILO, celebrated this year its tenth anniversary. Its unparalleled record of 169 ratifications in ten years no doubt reflected a major political will to eradicate child labour, especially its worst forms, as a major part of poverty alleviation and crisis recovery efforts; its multi- pronged approach provided a good example of the actions that should be taken to ensure that ratification was followed by constant and notable progress in implementation.

- Convention No. 129 on labour inspection in agriculture, which marked its 40th anniversary, contained important governance principles which were key to efforts to tackle the informal economy and poverty through the establishment and functioning of a labour inspection system for agricultural workers and their families.

- Convention No. 1 on hours of work in industry, was the inaugural act of the ILO's standard-setting activities, adopted 90 years ago. This Convention followed up on the constitutionally proclaimed objective of establishing a maximum working day and week as an urgent requirement for guaranteeing universal and lasting peace. This objective remained relevant today in the light of the pressures that the financial and economic crisis could exert on conditions of work.

- Convention No. 94 on labour clauses in public contracts celebrated this year its 60th anniversary and was closely linked to crisis recovery by encouraging public authorities to raise the bar and act as model employers. The Office recently published a practical guide explaining how this Convention could be implemented.

- Convention No. 95 on the protection of wages, another instrument that just turned 60 this year, afforded protection in an area that impinged closely on the rights set forth in the eight fundamental ILO Conventions and reflected an essential means to avoid wage deflation and open the way to recovery from the crisis.

- Convention No. 97 on migration for employment continued to provide, 60 years after its adoption, important guidance on what should constitute the basic components of a comprehensive migration policy in the context of the financial crisis and the persistence of poverty and inequalities worldwide.

- Convention No. 169 on indigenous and tribal peoples, the only binding up to date international instrument specifically dedicated to protecting the rights of indigenous peoples, was adopted 20 years ago. Being responsible for this Convention, the ILO had a lead role to play in the UN system with respect to indigenous and tribal peoples and the ILO Programme to Promote Convention No. 169 had been instrumental for the delivery of technical cooperation, following up on the findings of the supervisory bodies.

68. During the course of the general discussion of the Conference Committee on the Application of Standards, the Employer members emphasized that the current global economic crisis and the stress that it was placing on workplaces and people highlighted the importance of the implementation and maintenance of ratified international labour standards. The economic crisis could not and should not be used as an excuse to lower standards. Now more than ever labour standards mattered, and the work of the Committee of Experts and of the Conference Committee also really mattered. Any gains that anyone believed could be obtained by lowering standards were illusory. No sustainable recovery could be built without sustainable labour standards.

96. Following the general discussion in the Committee on the Application of Standards of the report of the committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, the Committee on the Application of Standards agreed that the Officers report to the Committee of the Whole on their debate, as it considered that it had an important tangible input to make to the debate on the global economic crisis.

101. The Employer members noted the statement by the Committee of Experts in paragraph 15 of its report that some member States had made substantial progress in addressing serious failures relating to reporting. This improvement, which was to be applauded, appeared to be the result of the individualized practical steps taken, on which further information should be provided. In addition, they called upon the Office to intensify its strategy of raising awareness and identifying more accurately the underlying problems, and providing targeted technical assistance. Governments should continue to build up institutional capacity to comply with standards-related obligations and, prior to ratification, they needed to examine carefully their capacity to comply with the obligations to both implement and report on the respective Conventions. Ratification was not an end in itself and should only be undertaken when there was a realistic chance of compliance with both types of obligations. In the longer term, the reporting problem would only be overcome through the simplification of the language used and the reconciliation of the diverse reporting requirements, especially during the current economic crisis. They added that although the failure to reply to the comments of the supervisory bodies had decreased slightly, there were still 519 cases of failure to reply from 46 countries. This problem of the failure to reply to the comments of the supervisory bodies required further examination. The experience of recent years showed that simply resending the same comments was not the most effective solution.

109. The Chairperson of the Committee of Experts, responding to points made, referred first of all to the strong exception made by the Employer members to paragraph 133 of the Experts' Report, which discussed the impact of the financial crisis on social security, where it stated: "the global financial crisis calls for a State that is willing and able to effectively regulate markets by all appropriate means". She explained that in that paragraph, the members of the Committee of Experts were discussing a financial crisis that had affected the financial stability of social security funds, many of which had been badly affected by the fall in share values on stock markets worldwide. They were referring to the fact that certain financial investment vehicles, such as hedge funds, often were outside the coverage of financial regulation and, also, that there seemed to have been lax monitoring of regulated items, such as credit lending standards. As a result, the Experts were referring to regulation of financial markets, and not of labour markets. Moreover, the term "appropriate means" had been used since the way in which governments chose to act to ensure financial stability was different in different national contexts.

116. At the very outset, the representative of the Secretary-General wished to thank all those who had participated in this discussion and to underline its importance for the secretariat in the discharge of its core responsibilities in supporting the work of the supervisory bodies. The Chairperson of the Committee of Experts had already responded to certain matters raised concerning the report of the Committee of Experts and its General Survey. Before turning to the matters falling within the Office's responsibility, the speaker wished to respond to two requests made respectively by IMEC and the Employer members.

The Occupational Safety and Health Convention (No. 155) and Recommendation (No. 164), 1981, and the Protocol of 2002 to the Occupational Safety and Health Convention No. 155

129. The Committee devoted part of its general discussion to the examination of a General Survey carried out by the Committee of Experts on the application of the Occupational Safety and Health Convention (No. 155) and Recommendation (No. 164), 1981, and the Protocol of 2002 to the Occupational Safety and Health Convention No. 155. The General Survey took into account information from 123 member States including information in 262 reports communicated by member States under article 19 of the ILO Constitution. According to its usual practice, the Committee of Experts also made use of available information in the reports submitted under articles 22 and 35 of the Constitution by those member States that had ratified Convention No. 155 and the Protocol. Information on national law and practice in the preparatory work to the Protocol was also taken into account, as appropriate. Observations and comments received from 28 employers' and workers' organizations, to which government reports were communicated in accordance with article 23(2) of the Constitution, were also reflected in the General Survey.

130. The Employer members welcomed the opportunity offered by the General Survey to discuss occupational safety and health (OSH), which was a core theme of the ILO's work. Social dialogue played an important role in this respect, since a high level of OSH could only be achieved through cooperation between all of the parties concerned. For an OSH system to function, OSH regulations had to be respected and applied by workers. The Employer members welcomed the fact that the General Survey reported many positive developments in different regions of the world. In particular, they appreciated the views expressed by the Committee of Experts that globalization and the activities of international enterprises had had a positive impact on the advancement of OSH in developing countries.

164. Generally the Survey was well received. According to the Government member of Belgium the General Survey constituted a real reference book from which a manual for trainers and vocational schools could be drawn. In the same vein, the Government member of Sweden expressed the view that the General Survey was a comprehensive and thorough product, and particularly an important landmark, as it emphasized the shift from the prescription of protective measures to prevention as a significant step in the development of OSH standard setting. The Government member of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela considered the General Survey to provide an appropriate frame of reference for national systems in terms of prevention and continuous improvement. However, the Worker member of Canada echoed the concerns voiced by the Worker spokesperson, and noted that the concluding remarks of the General Survey did not ascribe a major role to governments nor to the ILO. The ILO should come up with an action plan to define a path towards the future. In general, the bureaucratic picture given in the General Survey concerning, for example, various dialogue structures, the right to participation as well as training and education issues did not paint a complete picture of the real situation. The follow-up to the report should help to construct a more complete picture. The Worker member of South Africa added that the conclusions and recommendations of the General Survey were weak in addressing the ongoing challenges in view of the extremely high number of deaths, injuries and diseases resulting from poor or unsafe working conditions.

165. Several speakers emphasized the relevance of the instruments at issue and the approach to OSH they expressed. The Government member of Algeria stated the issue of worker protection was more topical than ever, particularly in the light of the estimated data on the numbers of work-related accidents that occurred each year. The issue of occupational safety and health needed to be further promoted by the ILO to create general awareness among all stakeholders, including governments, employers and workers, occupational doctors and prevention engineers.

172. A number of speakers referred to the question of OSH in the informal economy. The Government member of Cuba stated that there was no reason why the so-called informal economic sector (economy) should remain on the fringes of national integration policies in relation to safety and health, as it was in the greatest need of basic protection and standards for the safety and health of workers. The focus should be on what could be done, even with limited resources, such as programmes of practical measures to reduce work-related accidents and diseases. The protection of children was of particular importance as, in a number of countries, many children worked in the informal sector in extremely dangerous jobs which should be eliminated and which constituted some of the worst forms of child labour. Emphasis had been placed on corporate social responsibility with a view, for example, to establishing effective measures to examine the causes of risks and ways of removing them from the workplace, as well as providing worker representatives with opportunities for dialogue so that they could play an active role in improving labour standards.

176. A few speakers addressed the role of MNE's in awareness-raising efforts. The Employer member of Belgium recalled that, during the discussion in 2003 leading to the adoption of Convention No. 187, agreement had emerged on the concept of a preventative safety and health culture, as defined in Article 1(d) of Convention No. 187. He referred to the challenges and opportunities which, according to the Committee of Experts, needed to be taken into account for future action in this area. These included encouraging MNEs to serve as role models, supporting the implementation of workplace strategies through corporate social responsibility initiatives and sharing information and extending training capacities to assist smaller enterprises in the implementation of at least basic preventive and protective measures. Increased attention should be paid to awareness raising, promotional efforts, training and adequate OSH information and education, not only by governments, but also employers' and workers' organizations. He emphasized that voluntary initiatives in the area of OSH which went beyond compliance with national law had been adopted not only by MNEs, but also by SMEs. He also referred to the recent creation by the International Organisation of Employers (IOE) of a global OSH network (GOSH), bringing together companies with the aim of exploring, disseminating and encouraging good practice in OSH, thereby offering a direct response to the call made by the Committee of Experts. One particular initiative was the establishment and worldwide dissemination of an OSH training programme for company managers, with the support of the ILO Turin Centre. An important element during the 2003 discussion of the Global Strategy on Occupational Safety had been to "practice what you preach", which should also be borne in mind by governments. Governments at all levels in different countries not only employed a vast number of people, but could also influence millions of enterprises through large contractors and supply chains by ensuring that effect was given to OSH legislation, with the focus on prevention. He recalled that these conclusions also called on the Office to improve the mainstreaming of OSH in other ILO activities and progressively to apply the integrated approach to all other areas of ILO activities. The challenges that the Committee of Experts had identified for MNEs applied to the Office, which still had a long way to go to assume leadership in the field of OSH in its own practices, programmes and initiatives.

178. Several speakers provided additional or complementary information regarding national practice with regard to OSH and the ratification prospects of the relevant instruments. The Government member of Algeria stated that his country in recent years had taken a series of measures to improve prevention of occupational hazards. These included the adoption of standards on the use of chemicals and the establishment of an organizational framework for consultation and action involving all stakeholders at the enterprise level. The labour inspectorate had significant prerogatives in relation to OSH and had benefited from government measures for its modernization and strengthening. The Government would continue its efforts to protect the fundamental rights of workers and ensure the implementation of international labour standards.

191. A number of speakers expressed their views with regard to the way forward in this area for the ILO and its constituents. The Government member of Sweden said that the significance of work and the working environment for individual health and corporate success had been very widely discussed recently in Sweden and abroad. Previous research in this area had concentrated on risk elimination at the workplace, but now attention was turning to a more preventive and promotional approach. Paragraph 304 of the concluding remarks was of special interest as it referred to the economic dimension of OSH. The Committee of Experts had noted that preventive OSH measures could represent savings to companies and enhance productivity, and had called for further research in this area. She presented the main conclusions of recent Swedish research on the work environment as a factor of competitiveness. There was compelling evidence that sound and systematic initiatives for improving the work environment would lead to positive results in many areas cherished by companies, such as the health of their staff. In general, work supported health. At best, the work environment could promote creativity and give individuals a sense of significance and context. A healthy work environment improved the health of the individual. An inclusive workplace also offered the possibility for large numbers of citizens to earn their living through work. Discussions about the work environment often revolved around the health and well-being of the individual. Recent research suggested that the effects of the work environment on quality and productivity could be substantially higher than those related to personal economics. Economic and demographic challenges should not be incentives to neglect the issue of the work environment. Emphasis should continue to be placed on the importance of the work environment for important strategic issues, such as quality, creativity and social responsibility, and on the fact that a healthy work environment was a key factor of productivity and competitiveness.

201. The Employer members welcomed the discussion of the General Survey and emphasized that it was important to ensure the extension of an effective OSH culture. Indeed, the most important aspect was to raise awareness of this essential objective, which should be done at an early age in the context of education and training in accordance with the activity and size of the enterprise. Perhaps less importance should be attached to the issue of ratification or to the constant development of new regulations in the various forms that they took, such as codes of practice, of which there were many examples at both the national and international levels, promoted by such international bodies as the CIS, the ISO and the European Agency for Safety and Health. In its work on OSH, the ILO needed to draw more fully on the experience of national and international occupational safety and health institutions. It was also important to ensure that labour inspection systems operated effectively. Moreover, even where inspection systems had reached a high level, they still needed to be continually adapted to technological developments. The Employer members emphasized that OSH was an absolute priority and that it was not acceptable to use the current financial crisis as a pretext for letting OSH standards fall. They observed that many countries that had not ratified Convention No. 155 had a high standard of OSH. They therefore expressed doubts about the conclusion reached by the Committee of Experts that further action should be taken to promote the ratification of the Convention. Indeed, information should be gathered on the obstacles impeding the ratification of Convention No. 155. Should obstacles persist to the ratification of Convention No 155, it might be preferable to promote the ratification of Convention No. 187. In conclusion, the Employer members emphasized that all parties, governments, employers and workers alike, needed to assume their responsibilities in the field of OSH, and that the blame for specific accidents could not normally be attributed to a single party.

* * *

206. Following the discussion and the high level of exchange that took place in the Committee on the General Survey on occupational safety and health, the Committee decided to formulate the following conclusions. It considered that the General Survey was a valuable reference document not only for the tripartite constituents but also for trainers and vocational schools.

(a) The Office should complete the information provided by the Committee of Experts on obstacles to ratification of the relevant instruments and provide technical assistance as appropriate to member States of the ILO to address these obstacles. In addition, the Office should develop a strategy for the promotion of the ratification and the effective implementation of the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155), its 2002 Protocol and/or the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187).

(b) Collect, evaluate and disseminate statistical data on occupational safety and health. The Committee invited all parties concerned, including governments, employers and workers and their organizations, public officials and labour inspectors and the ILO and its field offices, to cooperate in this regard.

(c) Promote a preventative safety and health culture aimed at sensitizing all levels of the workforce and management.

(d) Develop a methodology for evaluating occupational safety and health in practice, including specific occupational safety and health indicators.

(e) Conduct empirical studies on the economic impact of occupational safety and health standards.

(f) Broaden access to occupational safety and health education and training, integrate it at all levels of education and ensure that at the enterprise level, occupational safety and health training included not only occupational safety representatives but also managers and employers.

(g) Promote and disseminate best practices in the field of occupational safety and health prevention.

(h) Examine ways of addressing the challenges faced for the implementation of occupational safety and health measures by SMEs and the informal economy to enable them to put occupational safety and health measures in place.

(i) Develop systems concerning recording and notification of occupational accidents and diseases, to:

(i) prioritize measures and economic sectors in special need of attention;

210. The Worker members emphasized that the serious failures by member States to fulfil their obligations impeded the proper functioning of the supervisory system and allowed the countries concerned to take unfair advantage of this non-compliance with their obligations, as it was impossible to review national law and practice. They noted that the individual cases that would soon be discussed were of a different nature, but that the failures considered so far were much more serious. Member States should take all possible steps to meet their obligations by having recourse, if necessary, to the technical assistance of the ILO.

214. In accordance with its terms of reference, the Committee considered the manner in which effect was given to article 19, paragraphs 5-7, of the ILO Constitution. These provisions required member States within 12, or exceptionally 18, months of the closing of each session of the Conference to submit the instruments adopted at that session to the authority or authorities within whose competence the matter lay, for the enactment of legislation or other action, and to inform the Secretary-General of the ILO of the measures taken to that end, with particulars of the authority or authorities regarded as competent.

216. The Committee noted that in order to facilitate the work of the Committee, the report of the Committee of Experts mentioned only the governments which had not provided any information on the submission to the competent authorities of instruments adopted by the Conference for seven sessions at least (from the 88th Session in May-June 2000 to the 95th Session in May-June 2006). This time frame was deemed long enough to warrant inviting Government delegations to the special sitting of the Conference Committee so that they may explain the delays in submission.

220. In Part II of its report (Compliance with obligations), the Committee had considered the fulfilment by States of their obligation to report on the application of ratified Conventions. By the date of the 2008 meeting of the Committee of Experts, the percentage of reports received was 70.2 per cent, compared with 65.0 per cent for the 2007 meeting. Since then, further reports had been received, bringing the figure to 78.0 per cent (as compared with 73.2 per cent in June 2007, and 75.4 per cent in June 2006).

221. The Committee noted with regret that no reports on ratified Conventions had been supplied for the past two years or more by the following States: Cape Verde, Guinea, Guinea- Bissau, Sierra Leone, Somalia, United Republic of Tanzania (Zanzibar), Togo, Turkmenistan and United Kingdom (British Virgin Islands and Falkland Islands (Malvinas)).

Antigua and Barbuda

Armenia

Dominica

Equatorial Guinea

Kyrgyzstan

Liberia

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

Sao Tome and Principe

Seychelles

Tajikistan

The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

Turkmenistan

227. The Committee noted that 262 of the 492 article 19 reports requested on the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155), the Occupational Safety and Health Recommendation, 1981 (No. 164), and the Protocol of 2002 to the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981, had been received at the time of the Committee of Experts' meeting, and a further nine since, making 55.1 per cent in all.

229. The Committee noted this year that the Governments of Bangladesh and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines had failed to indicate, over the past three years, whether they had communicated, in accordance with article 23(2) of the Constitution, copies of reports supplied under article 22 to the ILO, to the representative organizations of employers and workers.

230. The Committee noted with particular interest the steps taken by a number of governments to ensure compliance with ratified Conventions. The Committee of Experts listed in paragraph 54 of its report new cases in which governments had made changes to their law and practice following comments it had made as to the degree of conformity of national legislation or practice with the provisions of a ratified Convention. There were 49 such cases, relating to 40 countries: 2,669 cases where the Committee of Experts was led to express its satisfaction with progress achieved since it began listing them in 1964. These results were tangible proof of the effectiveness of the supervisory system.

233. The Government members of Bahrain, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Czech Republic, Djibouti, Haiti, Islamic Republic of Iran, Ireland, Kenya, Kiribati, Liberia, Mozambique, Nepal, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Russian Federation, Sudan, United Republic of Tanzania, United Republic of Tanzania (Zanzibar), Timor-Leste, Togo, Uganda and United Kingdom (Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Falkland Islands (Malvinas), Gibraltar, St Helena), had promised to fulfil their reporting obligations as soon as possible.

234. The Committee held a special sitting concerning the application by Myanmar of Convention No. 29, in conformity with the resolution adopted by the Conference in 2000. A full record of the sitting appears in Part Three of the report.

235. The Committee considered it appropriate to draw the attention of the Conference to its discussion of the cases mentioned in the following paragraphs, a full record of which appears as Part Two of this report.

239. The Committee recalled that its working methods provide for the listing of cases of continued failure over several years to eliminate serious deficiencies, previously discussed, in the application of ratified Conventions. This year the Committee noted with great concern that there had been continued failure over several years to eliminate serious discrepancies in the application by Myanmar of the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87).

241. The Committee wished to express its gratitude to the 50 governments which had collaborated by providing information on the situation in their countries and participating in the discussion of their individual cases.

(Signed) Mr Sergio Paixão Pardo

Mr Christiaan Horn

Endnotes