The Interregional Consultation, held from 13 to 14 December 1999, advised the ILO Programme on SafeWork about the priorities of the Programme; proposed how the ILO could best serve the member States, employers and workers worldwide; and suggested how the ILO can expand partnerships and enhance the mobilization of resources for the implementation of the SafeWork Programme in practice. The Programme of the Consultation is attached as Annex 1 and the List of Participants as Annex 2.
Election of the Meeting Officers
Prof. Danuta Koradecka, Poland, was elected Chairperson of the Consultation. Dr. Chaiyuth Chavalitnitikul, Thailand, was elected reporter from the government participants, Ms. Anne Bellamy, Australia, from the employer participants and Mr. Reg Green, ICEM, from the worker participants. It was agreed to formulate the Drafting Committee of Conclusions with the membership of the Chairperson, three reporters and the following three resource persons: Ms. Jenny Bacon, the United Kingdom, Prof. Jorma Rantanen, Finland and Mr. Gerry Scannell, United States.
Scope and Purpose of the Interregional Consultation
Mr. David Gold, SafeWork Programme, briefed the meeting about the objectives of the meeting and the structure of the Consultation programme. The members of the Consultation were encouraged to discuss the general goals and strategies of the SafeWork Programme and to come up with conclusions and recommendations on how the ILO could proceed to implement the Programme in practice with all relevant collaborative partners involved in the implementation. The work of the Consultation consisted of two plenary introductions describing the ILO Social Protection Sector and giving an Overview on SafeWork Programme, the contribution of the Director-General and the discussions of the three Working Groups. Annex 3 lists the participants of the Working Groups. Annexes 4, 5 and 6 contain the Working Groups’ reports.
Mr. Assefa Bequele, Director, Labour Protection Department, welcomed the participants and described recent developments in the ILO and the place of SafeWork in the work of the ILO. He explained that the protection of workers is at the heart of organization’s work and its raison d’être. The recent reorganization of the Office reinforced and gave greater prominence to this task. He pointed out that Mr. Juan Somavia, the new Director-General, has reorganized the office around four strategic objectives. These objectives are:
to promote and realize fundamental principles and rights at work;
to create greater opportunities for women and men to secure decent employment and income;
to enhance the coverage and effectiveness of social protection for all; and
to strengthen tripartism and social dialogue.
The Labour Protection Department together with the Social Security Department aim to extend social protection. The Labour Protection Department consists of programmes on occupational safety and health (the SafeWork Programme), conditions of work and migration. The SafeWork Programme focuses on workers in hazardous occupation, protection of vulnerable groups of workers and the extension of protection to all.
Mr. Bequele pointed out that in spite of the large number of workers injured and killed at work worldwide, occupational safety and health concerns have not drawn enough national and international attention. We need to look into the reasons and change the situation. A major challenge is how to put occupational safety and health high on the national and international agenda. This requires action that combines ethics, economics and statistics. Specifically, it calls for work along the following lines:
documenting the facts through a better statistics on accidents;
initiating work on the economics of accidents and diseases to show that occupational safety and health is more than an ethical issue, and by so doing show the cost of accidents and potential benefit of prevention; and
providing better services to ILO constituents through a global technical assistance programme on safety and health and the environment.
SafeWork Programme
Dr. Jukka Takala, Director, SafeWork Programme, described the background and aims of the ILO SafeWork Programme. (See also Annex 7.) He mentioned the high numbers of work-related fatalities (1.2 million [as of 1999; 2,2 million according to 2005 figures]
), occupational accidents (250 million [as of 1999; 270 million according to 2005 figures]
) and work-related diseases (160 million [according to both 1999 and 2005 figures]
) that take place each year around the world. In addition to the immeasurable human suffering, these cause a huge economic loss for all national economies (4 per cent of the world’s GDP) in the form of losses in work ability and productivity.
Concerning the priorities in occupational safety and health, countries in different stages of development face different problems. The main priorities in occupational safety and health in industrialized countries are stress; problems of ageing workforce; workers’ right to know about the risks involved in their work; chemicals; ergonomics; management and safety culture; occupational health services; and new technologies. Priorities for developing countries include agriculture and other dangerous occupations; major accidents and fires; safety, housekeeping and productivity; silicosis and other work-related diseases; vulnerable groups; gender issues; child workers; and transfer of technology. These priorities are to be considered in connection with inadequate education and training.
Even though differences in the priority lists exist, there are some similarities, and exchange of information and international collaboration can greatly support the solving of problems in the developing countries and the economies in transition, as many of these issues have already earlier been dealt with in the industrialized countries.
Dr. Takala mentioned the goals of the SafeWork Programme and described the strategies used to implement the Programme. These strategies are knowledge, advocacy, and capacity building; integrating new aspects on alcohol and drugs, stress and workplace support for people with HIV/AIDS; gender analysis and planning; and global technical cooperation. The ILO SafeWork Programme aims at producing major outputs such as the World Report on Life and Death at Work and new standards, codes and guides. These can be achieved through various activities, such as improving the knowledge base by developing the global statistics on hazardous occupations and sectors; preparing a report on the economic aspects of occupational safety and health; launching national programmes of action, such as those on chemical safety and silicosis; organizing training programmes for experts, employers and workers in occupational safety and health; producing training materials; and exchanging international information and experiences.
Members of the Consultation were encouraged to develop new and effective ways of implementing the global SafeWork Programme. Also, the contributions and commitment of the organizations represented in the Consultation were encouraged and welcomed.
Several major aspects concerning the feasibility of the ILO SafeWork Programme were taken up in the plenary discussion. The following members of the Consultation took the floor. Dr. Janet Asherson, Confederation of British Industry, UK; Mr. Lucien Royer, ICFTU; Ms. Jenny Bacon, Health and Safety Executive (HSE), UK; Prof. Jorma Rantanen, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Finland; Mr. Jorgen Assens, LO/TFT, Denmark; Mr. Peter Wedege, Norwegian Labour Inspectorate, Norway; Mr. Michael Besha, OATUU; Dr. Carlos Corvalan, Occupational Health Programme, WHO; Mr. Gerry Scannell, National Safety Council, US; Mr. Tadashi Shiiya, Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association (JISHA), Japan; Mr. Peter Hurst, IUF; Mr. Davis Layne, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), US; Prof. Jean-Francois Caillard, International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH); Prof. Juri Kundiev, Institute for Occupational Health, Ukraine; Dr. Paul Oldershaw, International Occupational Hygiene Association (IOHA).
The points made in the plenary discussion are summarized below. In general, the comments strongly supported the ILO SafeWork Programme initiative. It was concluded that the implementation of the SafeWork Programme would be beneficial to all countries, including industrialized and developing countries and those in economic transition.
13.1 Situation analysis
Analysis. All the Member States were encouraged to study at the national level the work that has been done in the past toward improving occupational safety and health in their countries. This analysis should identify the main problems and reasons why we have not succeeded better in the development of safety and health at work. Is it the lack of political will, resources, or information? Is appropriate legislation missing? Is the number of labour inspectors insufficient? Is personal protective equipment (PPE) available and used? Are workers literate? These questions should also be raised at the international level. After this analysis, priorities can be determined. Successful practices should also be studied.
Practical considerations. Making occupational safety and health programmes practicable also needs thorough consideration. Building a programme should be discussed in detail in order to integrate top-down and from-below innovations in the implementation.
Progress in the field. It was also felt that despite enormous progress in other fields of society, particularly in technology, health research and economy, such advances have not been reflected in occupational safety and health developments.
13.2 Advocacy
Priority position. More advocacy of occupational safety and health is needed. In most countries occupational safety and health is low on the political agenda, even though all the resources needed for any other activity in the society are produced through work. A higher priority could be received if occupational safety and health could work more closely with other issues important to the public. A number of options should be explored for gaining a priority position, including organization of a National Safety Day.
World summit. Organization of a World Summit on Occupational Safety and Health and Development of the Work Life was proposed in order to achieve higher priority, visibility and positive attitudes for safety and health at work. This should not prejudice the importance of collaborating and coordinating with other sectors and the implementation of the objectives set by, for instance, Agenda 21 of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro.
Media. Newspapers, journals, radio, television, the Internet and other media should be used more effectively in forwarding the message and increasing awareness. These instruments could be used much more systematically. Regular series and programmes for general awareness-raising and information dissemination could be developed. Many high-level experts are willing to assist in sending the message.
13.3 Occupational Safety and Health Priorities
Traditional and new risks. Although occupational safety and health risks differ from country to country, similar traditional risks appear in all countries of the world. In many industrialized countries, 25 to 30 per cent of the workers remain exposed to risks of occupational accidents; occupational diseases, including occupational cancer; chemicals; and heavy physical work. A need now exists for greater knowledge of and competence to deal with new risks such as the problems of psychological stress, changes and insecurity in the work life, ergonomics, reproductive hazards, allergies, information overload, and problems of new materials and work practices as well as problems arising from new technologies, such as exposure to radio frequency waves and non-ionizing radiation. Research must continue, as new work-related problems constantly emerge.
Vulnerable groups. Numerous especially vulnerable groups substantially differ from the average middle-aged man for whom standards and norms were traditionally designed. The special problems of ageing workers needs to be considered: their experience needs to be better utilized, work needs to be adjusted for them, their ability to work needs to be supported, and discrimination to be prevented. The same is the case with female, handicapped, young and adolescent, migrant and mobile workers. Workers in small enterprises, agricultural workers, the self-employed, and informal sector workers need to be covered by the appropriate legislation, norms and services.
Better coverage of occupational safety and health services. In addition to traditional safety services for enforcement and implementation of occupational safety and health legislation and standards, occupational health services must be provided to every working individual, including the self-employed, irrespective of the size of the company, sector of economy, employer-employee relationship. Tools are also needed for enforcement of existing regulations on safety and health and on occupational health services. Enforcement alone is not enough; we need awareness for all workers and all employers in all countries.
Collaboration at the workplace level. Making work safer and healthier requires better organization of the collaboration at the workplace level. Therefore, internal control and management systems should be developed. A voluntary auditing system for countries could be developed within the framework of the SafeWork Programme. Such a system could be used to evaluate safety and health policies and their implementation. It could also show and use benchmarks (e.g. ILO Conventions and guidelines) and stimulate positive competition between the operators in safety and health issues. Simultaneously, safety and health could be made an element of quality systems and a factor for attracting clients and consumers towards enterprises’ products and services.
Employers’ responsibility. The responsibility of employers for safety and health at work should be taken as a starting point for the development work in all countries. The ILO SafeWork Programme should focus on transmitting knowledge and introducing new occupational safety and health management methods to the member States.
Economic aspects. In addition to the direct costs of accidents and diseases, the effects on economic benefits and productivity should be calculated. Expenditures on safety and health should be viewed as investments, not costs. It was concluded that while economic appraisal is important, occupational safety and health also have value per se. Increasing and maintaining health and safety at work, which can contribute to the development of workers’ abilities, can also improve the productivity and overall development of enterprises. In the long run this may lower overall costs. Experience in some countries has demonstrated surprisingly positive impact on health, safety, work ability and the economic sustainability of companies. The "protection pays" approach should be marketed. It was recommended that positive safety-related examples be compiled for others to learn from.
Development of safety cultures. The development of safety cultures was mentioned as an important target in all countries. In addition to safety measures at the workplace, greater safety on the highway was mentioned as one specific target.
Education. Education at all levels is key. Education on occupational safety and health should be included in the learning modules of primary and vocational schools in order to improve the general awareness of the relationship between work and health. Employers, workers, occupational safety and health experts, researchers, authorities and everyone involved in the world of work should participate in a lifelong learning process that includes occupational safety and health. Because of the continuous changes in the work life, training of labour inspectors is needed. Education and training elements of the SafeWork Programme could be implemented in developing countries under ILO technical cooperation and with the help of the funding and assistance from the industrialized countries.
Statistics. The ILO has done a lot to make the statistics on labour accidents more comparable between the countries. However, more work still needs to be done. Harmonizing the basic safety statistics is a worthwhile endeavour. Decision-makers and policy-makers need reliable, accurate statistics in order to set priorities for preventive measures and actions at the national level.
Clearinghouse of information. It was proposed that a data bank of good examples be established to show what has worked and what has not. Information on measures taken in one country could be of interest to others. A survey of already existing databanks should be conducted first.
Promotion of occupational safety and health. The creation of employment is important, as it provides workers with earnings and the basis for well-being. However, worker involves risks of accidents and diseases that must be prevented. While more emphasis should be put on the promotion of occupational safety and health than on the mere prevention of risks, this shift of emphasis can only be accomplished after the basic safety issues have been solved.
Documentation of priorities. The priorities in occupational safety and health in general, and of the SafeWork Programme in particular, need to be expressed in clear terms in order to raise the position of occupational safety and health on the international and national agenda. Clear documentation of priorities and goals also facilitates the subsequent evaluation of activities.
13.4 Partnerships
Building partnerships. Employers and workers should be intensively involved in the implementation of the SafeWork Programme. However, wider participation of various partners – environmental, consumer and financial interests, for example – contributes to raising the awareness of the public at large. Alliances with groups beyond the traditional ILO constituencies, such as health ministries and community groups, should be sought.
UN Organizations. An international campaign, implemented and coordinated by UN organizations and agencies, could be launched to raise awareness of the importance of accident prevention. A consistent, regular message on the importance of occupational health and safety is critical. An international commemoration day could be used as one part of the campaign, as is already done in many states. Fact sheets on occupational accidents and occupational diseases have already been prepared in collaboration with the ILO and WHO. Integration of the activities into Agenda 21 implementation should be promoted. In 2002 the Rio+10 (10 year review after the UNCED) meeting will be organized, which will provide a good forum for various actions.
International professional organizations. The international professional organizations, such as International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH), International Ergonomics Association (IEA) and International Occupational Hygiene Association (IOHA), offered their expertise for use in the implementation of the SafeWork Programme. ICOH is a knowledge producer; its 35 Scientific Committees can contribute to the Programme. ICOH organizes 30 to 40 international meetings every year. IEA has been active in the development of practical guides. IOHA has a lot of expertise available concentrating, especially on the preventive measures at the workplace level.
Other partners. A need to connect the ILO SafeWork Programme with the Programme on Sustainable Development was expressed. Sustainable workplaces would thus create a forum for the SafeWork activities. Good practices of multinational companies should be used as widely as possible. Occupational safety and health should also be linked to environment and sustainable development issues in order to strengthen its priority position on the political agenda.
Occupational health as a part of public health. Closer collaboration and synergism should be created between public health and occupational health; their roles should be defined and joint goals and projects implemented. In many parts of the world primary health care is a good vehicle for providing occupational health services.
ILO technical cooperation. Many of the member States may be ready to include some of the objectives of the SafeWork Programme in their national programmes. ILO technical cooperation is needed to implement the Programme.
Mr. Seiji Machida, SafeWork Programme, introduced the group discussions, the aim of which was to review future priorities; to suggest how the ILO could produce outputs and services to the member States, employers and workers worldwide; and to determine how the ILO could find and mobilize resources for the implementation of the Programme. A note on the background and points for discussions was used as a guide for the group discussion. (See Annex 8.)
Annexes 4, 5 and 6 contain the reports of the three Working Groups.
Mr. Juan Somavia, Director-General of the ILO, addressed the participants of the Inter-regional Consultation on SafeWork Programme on 14 December 1999. In his speech he dealt with globalization, its implication for occupational safety and health, and the possibilities to tackle the problems of a globalizing economy. The world seems to be moving towards open societies and open economies, he noted. These trends are positive provided that they can enhance the well-being of people. He emphasized the need to strengthen collaboration among the international organizations, because no one single organization can see the whole picture. Globalization is an integrated process; it is impossible to find sectoral solutions to global problems. SafeWork provides a framework for various organizations – international, national and local – to work together for the improvement of working conditions and occupational safety and health. It will promote the more active participation of relevant actors.
The demands of ordinary people are very simple: They ask for decent work, which entails having a job, respectful treatment and a reasonable pension and which enables a stable family life.
In the discussion, the role of small-scale enterprises (SSEs) was taken up. SSEs are expected to provide even more jobs in the future. In many cases, however, they less able to provide occupational health and safety services than large companies. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to ensure that occupational health and safety services are provided for all workers using the combinations of public and private service provision models. The ILO SafeWork Programme must address the challenge of finding new ways to increase the accessibility of the workers to the services.
The Consultation discussed and agreed on the following general conclusions, summarized by the chairperson on the basis of Introductions, Plenary Discussion, Contribution of the Director-General, the Working Group Discussions and the Drafting Committee discussion.
Ensuring political commitment. The political will to make occupational safety and health a top priority on the national political agenda is needed in all countries. This can be enhanced by raising the general awareness in the countries and by demonstrating to policy- and decision-makers that occupational safety and health, in addition to being a value in itself, also provides as a by-product support to the productivity and competitiveness of a country and the companies. Much research evidence supports the association between investment in safe working conditions, and good safety and health of the workers, and the long-term sustainable socio-economic development of the country. It was proposed that the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155), and the Occupational Health Services Convention, 1985 (No. 161), be upgraded into the ILO Core Conventions. A proposal to organize a World Summit on Occupational Safety and Health was put forward. It was recommended that the World Conference on Occupational Safety and Health, to be held in Vienna in 2002, should be changed to A World Summit on Occupational Safety and Health.
Raising awareness. In order to improve working conditions and workers’ safety and health, awareness of the association between work and health must be raised. The enormous economic loss caused by accidents and diseases and the positive economic impact of safety and health should also be more effectively communicated. Global campaigns, national occupational safety and health days/weeks, various media and numerous diverse actions to make occupational safety and health interesting and attractive to all workers worldwide can be used to raise awareness. This will eventually lead to increased interest among and pressures on politicians and economic decision-makers to give occupational safety and health a higher priority on the national agenda.
Implementing and strengthening legislation. The ILO Conventions and Recommendations, the SafeWork Programme and the WHO Global Strategy on Occupational Health for All provide good tools for planning and implementing occupational safety and health at the national level. The full implementation of existing national legislation would be an important and practical step. Existing information technologies and readily available information make it possible to take huge steps in the improvement of working conditions worldwide, provided that the exchange of information and provision of technical support is planned systematically. With a view to strengthening the national framework, all practical steps should be taken to promote the ratification and the implementation of the ILO Conventions in the member States.
Strengthening technical support at the country level. In order to make practical impact at the workplace level in the countries, technical support is needed. This necessitates clear delineation of projects and their financial requirements. The ILO SafeWork Programme should make a programme leaflet and Web pages that provide to the countries, institutions, organizations and other partners a clear picture of the Programme’s objectives and goals as well as the various collaborative projects going on. The programme elements should have measurable goals that would be easy to evaluate after the implementation of the Programme. Both bilateral and multilateral collaboration projects should be carried out within the SafeWork Programme. Institutions for occupational safety and health throughout the world should be mobilized within the framework of the existing networks. The partners could then allocate their contributions to various elements of technical programmes. The resulting organizational "map" would also facilitate understanding of various projects among funders. The ILO itself should also allocate more funds through its regular budget to the SafeWork Programme.
Providing practical guidelines. Numerous guidelines demonstrating good practices for the management of specific occupational safety and health activities are available in various countries. It was recommended that the ILO undertake a survey on the existing ones and provide information on them in one of its databases. If published only in national languages, they could be translated into English. It was also recommended that certain so far unpublished guidelines (e.g. on good practices in occupational safety and health) be prepared and published by the ILO for wide distribution to all constituents.
Strengthening education and training. Occupational health and safety is a lifelong learning process. Education and training at all levels are essential. Education on occupational safety and health should be included in the learning modules of primary and vocational schools in order to improve the general awareness of the relationship between work and health. Employers, workers, occupational safety and health experts, researchers, authorities and everyone involved in the world of work should participate in a lifelong learning process that includes occupational safety and health. Because of the continuous changes in the work life, training should be provided regularly. The training and education needs and contents of training of the target groups depend on their context of occupations and branch of industry.
Initiating economic appraisal of occupational safety and health. It was concluded that while economic appraisal is vital, occupational safety and health also have intrinsic value. The demonstration of economic benefits derived from occupational safety and health activities and improved work ability and productivity can be used to strengthen the occupational safety and health measures as a part of company strategies. Occupational health and safety can develop and maintain workers’ abilities and simultaneously increase productivity and support enterprise development and efficiency. Positive safety-related models and examples should be compiled and distributed for others to learn from.
Improving statistics and information. The ILO has worked towards more standardization among countries’ accident statistics in order to facilitate international comparisons, but more still needs to be done. Harmonized basic safety statistics would be extremely useful. Statistics are also important for decision- and policy-makers determining their countries’ priorities for the preventive measures and actions. Within the framework of the SafeWork Programme, various types of ILO information can be effectively used.
Strengthening existing partnerships and establishing new ones. The SafeWork Programme should ensure wide participation of various partners, both explicitly occupational safety and health-related partners (e.g. employers, workers, managers, occupational safety and health experts, and authorities) and non-related partners (e.g. environmental, consumer and financial interests). Alliances should be forged with groups beyond the traditional ILO constituencies without prejudicing the interest of occupational safety and health. The latest telecommunication technologies should be used as widely as possible for networking of the partners. In the long run, this may save time and resources, both human and financial.
Networking of research institutions. Though much scientific evidence on various occupational safety and health risks and hazards currently exists, further research activities should be carried out in response to new risks emerging from the continuously changing world of work. Such research should be organized in a concerted manner with a view to effectively using the limited resources by networking research institutions. More scientifically based research information is needed about the effects of promotion of occupational health and safety and the maintenance of work ability. Research institutions throughout the world are invited to contribute to the implementation of the SafeWork Programme.
Establishing an Advisory Committee. Globalization of work life entails interrelated processes of developments. Given the scarce resources for occupational safety and health everywhere, the best possible scientific and professional advice, cost-effective use of financial resources in various programmes, and advice in the identification of the needs of the Member States are necessary. Therefore, a multipartite Advisory Committee should be established in order to review the progress of the SafeWork programme and to plan future activities.
Marketing the SafeWork Programme. The ILO should develop a marketing plan for SafeWork Programme using existing materials and channels as well as developing new ones. It was concluded that all members of the Consultation should act as ambassadors in their own counties for promoting the SafeWork Programme.
Involving international financial institutions. Funds could be mobilized from various sources such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, International Monetary Fund and development aid agencies. Every major development agency and organization should have a special element on occupational safety and health built into their programmes (e.g. road construction, port construction).
Involving national insurance institutions. At the national level, the mobilization of more funds for prevention from workers’ compensation schemes, insurance companies and social security funds should be considered. Achieving this goal would require concerted efforts of the government and employers’ and workers’ organizations, which could argue that the allocation of funds for prevention would result in a less total expenditure. The possibility of mobilizing national associations of branches of economy in industrialized countries to support their counterparts in developing countries should be explored.
All the participants of the interregional consultation strongly supported the goals and objectives of the SafeWork Programme. They appreciated the initiative and commitment of the ILO Director-General, Mr. Juan Somavia, on the implementation of the SafeWork Programme. They acknowledged the necessity of the continued personal leadership of the Director-General to engage the key decision-makers and policy-influencers to gain commitment to improving programmes for safety and health at work.
Annex 1: Programme of the Interregional Consultations on the ILO SafeWork Programme
Geneva, 13-14 December 1999
Monday, 13 December 1999
08.15- 09.00
Registration
Rm. VII
09.00- 09.30
Opening
opening remarks by the Secretariat,
election of the chairperson,
adoption of the programme,
election of reporters and the members of the conclusions drafting committee,
brief explanation of the objectives of the meeting.
Rm. VII
09.30-09.50
Brief Introduction of the Social Protection Sector
Rm. VII
09.50-10.30
Overview of SafeWork
Rm. VII
10.30-10.45
Break
10.45-12.30
Plenary Discussion on SafeWork
Objective: To obtain general guidance on SafeWork including priorities,
strategies and contribution/participation of national and international institutions
active in promoting occupational safety and health.
Rm. VII
12.15-12.30
Briefing on Group Discussion
Rm. VII
12.30-13.30
Lunch
13.30-15.30
Group Discussion: 3 Groups
Objective: To review future SafeWork priorities and suggest how the ILO
could effectively produce outputs and services for member States,
employers and workers worldwide; to suggest how the ILO could enhance resource
mobilization in member States and strengthen technical cooperation.
TBA
15.30-16.00
Break
16.00-18.00
Group Discussion (continued)
TBA
18.30-20.00
Reception
R2 French Restaurant
Tuesday, 14 December 1999
09.30-10.00
The Director General’s Contribution
Decent Work and SafeWork
Rm. XI
10.00-10.30
Discussion on the Director General’s Contribution
Rm. XI
10.30-10.45
Break
10.45-11.30
Presentation of the results from the Group Discussions
Dr. Janet Asherson Head, Health, Safety and Environment
Confederation of British Industry
Centre Point
103 New Oxford Street
London WC1A 1DU
United Kingdom
Mrs. Adela Barona de Sanchez-Mejorada Managing Director
Confederación Patronal de la república Mexicana (COPARMEX)
World Trade Center, Oficina No 20, Nivel 14, Av. de la Naciones No 1
Colonia Nápoles, C.P. 03810 México, D.F.
Mexico
Mr. Michael Besha Assitant Secretary-General
Organisation of African Trade Union Unity OATUU
Aviation Road, Airport Residential Area, P.O. Box M 386
Accra
Ghana
Prof. J.-F. Caillard President
International Commission on Occupational Heath (ICOH)
Institut de Médicine du Travail de Haute Normandie CHR 1, rue de Germont
F-76031 Rouen Cedex
France
Dr. Chaiyuth Chavalitnitikul Expert on Occupational Health and Safety
Department of Labour Protection and Welfare
Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare
8th Floor, Mitmaitri Rd. Dindang
Bangkok 10400
Thailand
Mr. Katsuya Enomoto Deputy Director
Japan International Centre for Occupational Safety and Health
Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association (JISHA)
5-35-1 Shiba, Minato-ku
Tokyo 108-0014
Japan
Mr. Angel Fuente-Martin Principal Administrator
DG Employment and Social Affairs
European Commission
Batiment Jean Monnet
EUFO 3/291, L-2920
Luxembourg
Dr. Karl Kuhn Deputy Head of Department
Bundesanstalt für Arbeitsschutz und Arbeitmedizin (BAuA)
Friedrich-Henkel-Weg 1-25, Postfach 170202
44149 Dortmund
Germany
Mr. Davis Layne Deputy Assistant Secretary for Labour for Occupational Safety and Health
US Dept. of Labour OSHA
200 Constitution Ave.
Washington DC 20201
USA
Dr. Juan Antonio Legaspi Velasco Director-General, Occupational Safety and Hygiene
Secretariat of labour and Social Security
Valencia NE 36, Insurgentes-Mixcoac
03920 Mexico D.F.
Mexico
Mr. Mahinder Kumar Malhotra Deputy Director-General
Directorate General Factory Advice Service & Labour Institutes
N.S. Mankikar Marg
Mumbai 400 022
India
Mr. J.N. Nee Divional Loss Control Manager
Business South Africa & SA Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors
18 Buffelgras Street, Birchleigh 1619, P.O. Box 2994
1620 Johannesburg
Republic of South Africa
The Group recognized the primacy and vital importance of occupational health and safety, which should be placed as a priority item on the political agenda. It perceived that the ILO is well positioned to encourage and assist governments, trade unions and employers’ organizations to put occupations health and safety on their agendas. The Group concluded that the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155), and Occupational Health Services Convention, 1985 (No. 161), should be upgraded to be included among the ILO’s core Conventions. Recognizing that occupational health and safety are not only fundamental human rights but also means of increasing productivity and competitiveness, the Group identified a number of priorities:
Analysis. The current state of occupational health and safety needs to be studied in order for the needs for development and improvement to be identified. Such situation analysis could clarify what has succeeded and what has failed. It would thus create a helpful background for the SafeWork Programme’s activities. If carried out properly, the planned activities would be a logical result of the analysis. This analysis would also facilitate the marketing of the Programme. The situation analysis should also find out the reasons why many countries have not ratified conventions.
Definition. A cohesive definition of occupational health and safety, which includes the multiple facets such as organization, cooperation and information dissemination, would be beneficial for the SafeWork Programme.
Employers’ responsibility. The SafeWork Programme should highlight employers’ responsibility for organizing and maintaining health and safety at work.
Good practice. The ILO could publish guidelines on good practices in enforcement, education and training. The concept of good practice guidelines could be used broadly in the SafeWork Programme. Employers regularly prepare good practice guidelines for companies; health and safety aspects could be combined with these.
Sharing knowledge. The SafeWork Programme should promote the development of knowledge, which could then be shared collectively. Such knowledge could include experience in specific sectors or countries.
Collaboration. The SafeWork Programme should assist in the development of structures that would facilitate greater collaboration within and between workplaces and countries. For example, national safety councils, other relevant national bodies and workplace-level bipartite structures could enter into effective collaboration.
Informal sector needs. Workers in the informal sector need to be included in occupational health and safety coverage. Various already existing networks should be fully utilized.
Education and training. Education is a key issue in the development of working conditions and workers’ health. Training of the trainers provides a multiplying effect and it should be systematically used. There is a need for ensuring resources for continuing education. Different target groups for information and training should be identified and training and information contents should be modified accordingly. In organizing training and information, problems of illiteracy need to be taken into consideration in developing countries.
Partnerships
Wide partnerships
A clear analysis of the clients and partners, present and potential, should be made. Different target groups should be reached. The ILO could find ways to improve effectiveness in communicating with its constituents.
Occupational health and safety can be used not only as an organizing tool but also as a way of bringing in new members and forming new partnerships. When considering partnerships, sharp focus should be placed on problems, combinations of high-risk groups and measurable results. What drives employers and trade unions differs, and this should also be considered.
The ILO and other actors in occupational safety and health need to link with other organizations. It should be recognized that this might mean some loss of control over the activity. However, collaboration and alliances can allow the SafeWork to achieve more complete implementation.
Non-governmental organizations
The role of NGOs should be considered. They could pressure governments. They can act as intermediaries to people that work at home and offer a channel for communication. Conventions are good tools for workers’ organizations and governments. The aim is to partner with as many parties as possible in order to cover the whole spectrum of work, age, and life. The central question is: How do we make everybody an ambassador of occupational safety and health?
United Nations Organizations
Implementation of the SafeWork Programme should involve other international organizations. There should be ongoing collaboration with and contributions from other UN organizations.
Outputs
Developing and disseminating information are crucial elements of occupational health and safety. The Group identified a number of related activities for the SafeWork Programme:
Statistics. The statistics on work related accidents and diseases are essential basis for programme formulation and implementation. The support to the member States in the improvement of statistics and the improvements in the global estimates of accidents and diseases are also important.
Meetings. The Programme could plan and participate in international meeting, conferences and summits on occupational health and safety. The themes for national conferences can be extended to international conferences with the support of the ILO.
Technical cooperation. The launching of global technical cooperation projects is an important initiative for supporting developing countries and should aim at the effective mobilization resources and sharing information and experiences.
Good practices. The guiding principles are the same for all countries; implementation strategies need to be adjusted according to a country.
Measurable targets. Achievable goals (e.g. reduction by 20 per cent of occupational accidents; elimination of silicosis; reduction in cancer cases, chemically induced cancer and cancer caused by asbestos) could be set. These targets could then be used to measure the effectiveness of particular projects and approaches.
Advocacy. The World Report on Life and Death at Work was deemed an important and valuable output. Videos should be culturally adjusted.
Networking. The networking of relevant institutions and organizations should be promoted as a recommendable form of effective use of resources. Existing networks should be utilized fully.
Resource mobilization
The Group observed that the ILO could invite employers’ and workers’ organizations to its meetings to ensure better resource mobilization. It also supported the creation of an Advisory Committee for the SafeWork Programme that could regularly inform member States about advancements, review progress and plan future activities.
The group also suggested that the concerns of the SafeWork Programme should be communicated to other organizations, which could incorporate them into their own activities. For example, the World Bank and International Monetary Fund could include occupational health and safety standards and objectives in the projects to be started.
The SafeWork Programme could also work with others to maximize effectiveness of resource use. For example, research is needed. The ILO could commission research institutions and universities to undertake specific research projects.
The Group considered numerous factors that are prerequisites for sustainable development at both global and national levels. These include the development of a clear international and national occupational safety and health policy for the current and future situation, the drafting of effective legislation, ensuring that employers are responsible as well as environmental and ethical considerations. The SafeWork Programme is a highly relevant initiative for meeting these requirements.
The group identified a number of issues to be considered with respect to the creation and maintenance of partnerships.
Advisory Committee. A committee should be established to set new priorities of SafeWork and review the programme implementation.
Funding rules. ILO funding rules should be reviewed to facilitate wider financial support.
Existing partnerships. Collaboration with other international organizations, such as CSD, IALI, ICOH, IEA, IFCS, IOHA, IOMC, IPCS, ISSA and WHO should be strengthened. In addition, existing WHO Occupational Health Collaborating Centres and national occupational health and safety institutions and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs) could be mobilized to help implement SafeWork.
Concrete work. Specific joint ILO/WHO projects should be carried out with respect to statistical research, cost estimates, publication of the World Report on Life and Death at Work and the development of occupational health services for all workers.
Partnership at the enterprise level
New instruments have been developed for promoting partnerships at the enterprise level, including systems for internal control, occupational safety and health management systems, various types of performance indicators, systems for total quality management and continuous quality improvement, systems for accreditation and certification (with auditing) and overall development for companies, such as maintenance of work ability (MWA) in Finland.
Partnership at the national level
Several traditional and a number of new partners were identified. These include government bodies such as regulatory bodies and occupational safety and health authorities, employers’ and workers’ organizations, financial operators (e.g. banks, economic decision makers), NGOs (e.g. JISHA, US NSC), industrial branch associations, chambers of commerce, training and education organizations, social security schemes, health and environment sector actors, clients and consumer organizations.
Such partnerships could contribute to the development of new inspection capacities in new competence areas (e.g. psychological stress, environment and gender). They could also extend activities into new areas, such as quality labelling, certification and accreditation, and the development of consultation processes with NGOs and communities in order to take into account community and client demands.
Priorities
Awareness raising is an essential element of SafeWork. Activities to achieve this goal could include:
Launching of International Commemoration Day (28 April);
changing the World Conference on Occupational Safety and Health to a World Summit on Occupational Safety and Health; and
taking action to put occupational health and safety at the top of the political agenda by encouraging people to influence politicians;
Other priority actions include:
involving international financial institutions such as World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the Asian Development Bank and bilateral and other funding agencies in the promotion of occupational safety and health by having them incorporate OSH requirements in the loan conditions and by establishing SafeWork focal points in the financial institutions;
sharing and developing good practice guides
developing occupational health and safety management systems guides;
strengthening the effectiveness, coverage of enforcement and inspection systems; and
expanding SafeWork to collaborate with environmental programmes.
The Group identified a need for partnership at different levels, including at the enterprise, national and international levels. The partnerships at the enterprise level, which include employers, management and workers, safety committees, safety representatives and occupational health services, are the basis for enterprise-level action.
Resource mobilization
The group identified three types of entities which should be the focus of resource mobilization:
national workers’ compensation fund, insurance companies and social security funds;
development aid organizations: every major development programme should have a special element on occupational safety and health (e.g. road construction, port construction); and
national associations of branches of economy to support the respective branches in developing countries.
(Main emphasis in the discussion on resources mobilization)
Resource mobilization
The Group identified the following specific steps for resource mobilization:
In the light of the WTO meeting, the ILO Director-General should contact the governments of the highly industrialized countries, in particular OECD countries, to seek their financial support for SafeWork as a programme that can meet the goal of raising health, safety and environmental standards, especially in developing countries and countries with economies in transition.
As part of awareness raising campaigns, the ILO could establish an award in conjunction with relevant national bodies on safety and health. This may be linked with a workers’ memorial day or other health and safety-related national event.
The ILO should engage in dialogue with private insurance companies and others with respect to supporting SafeWork. It could investigate the possibility of insurance rebates for successful programmes in support of SafeWork.
In cooperation with ISSA and the Social Security Department of the ILO, develop social security policies and research linking prevention and healthcare.
Some companies have large funding foundations that could be tapped for funding for specific SafeWork projects.
The ILO could act as a coordinating body for relevant existing and planned research.
The ILO should explore government tax incentives for support of SafeWork.
Awareness raising
Investing in the prevention of death and ill health is a priority and must be shown to be beneficial to all concerned. Toward this end, the ILO "brand" could be marketed with the involvement and commitment of all the tripartite groups. Communication will be vital and the establishment of SafeWork hotlinks on government, employers and unions’ Web sites as well as NGOs’ involved in occupational health and safety may prove to be an important tool. The SafeWork programme should also be advertised to other agencies.
In addition, the ILO could prepare a Green book on the economics of occupational safety and health
Partnerships
The group outlined the following issues to be considered with respect to the creation of partnerships.
Human resources will be a major factor in support of SafeWork. Therefore, an audit should be undertaken of existing networks of occupational health and safety professionals with a view to identifying possible partners.
Relevant national and regional research institutions may incorporate the objectives of SafeWork into their programmes.
Centres of excellence, such as the European Agency on Safety and Health at Work and the WHO network of collaborating centres, should be identified and contacted.
The possibility of workplace certification of occupational safety and health standards supported and monitored by the ILO could be explored.
Other ILO Programmes and programmes dealing with employment and training, workers’ education, enterprise and management development should reflect the goals of SafeWork.
Multinational companies’ "pull" on small and medium-sized enterprises may be more effective than government regulatory "push".
A tripartite Advisory Committee for SafeWork should be established to coordinate the Programmes activities, including its participation in alliances.
Around the world, millions of men, women and children work in poor and hazardous conditions:
Every year, more than 1.2 million people
[as of 1999; 2,2 million according to 2005 figures]
die of work-related accidents and diseases.
More than 160 million workers
[according to both 1999 and 2005 figures]
fall ill each year due to workplace hazards.
The poorest, least protected - often women, children and migrants - are also among the most affected.
Micro and small enterprises account for over 90 per cent of enterprises where conditions are often very poor and the workers in them are often excluded from all labour protection.
Human suffering has no measurable cost, unlike economic losses. Estimates from the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and Norway, for example, put the direct cost of accidents in billions of dollars. In many developing countries, death rates among workers are five to six times those in industrialized countries. Yet the phenomenon is still largely undocumented, and there is insufficient political will to address the problem. Global competition, growing labour market fragmentation and rapid change in all aspects of work creates a mounting challenge for labour protection, especially in developing countries. Workers in rural areas and the urban informal sector are often ignored or difficult to reach.
Goals
The Programme has four major goals:
preventive policies and programmes are developed to protect workers in hazardous occupations and sectors;
effective protection is extended to vulnerable groups of workers falling outside the scope of traditional protective measures;
governments and employers’ and workers’ organizations are better equipped to address problems of workers’ well-being, occupational health care and the quality of working life;
the social and economic impact of improving workers’ protection is documented and recognized by policy- and decision-makers.
Strategy
SafeWork aims to create worldwide awareness of the dimensions and consequences of work-related accidents, injuries and diseases; to place the health and safety of all workers on the international agenda; and to stimulate and support practical action at all levels. With this in mind, the programme will launch groundbreaking research, statistical work and media-related activities, and will support national action through a global programme of technical assistance. Human suffering and the cost to society, as well as the potential benefits of protection, such as enhanced productivity, quality and cost savings, will be better documented and publicized. SafeWork will promote, as a policy and operational tool, the primacy of prevention as an efficient and cost-effective way of providing safety and health protection to all workers.
SafeWork will do first things first. It will focus on hazardous work and give primary attention to workers in especially hazardous occupations in sectors where the risks to life and safety are manifestly high, such as agriculture, mining and construction, workers in the informal sector, and those occupationally exposed to abuse and exploitation, such as women, children and migrants.
SafeWork will adopt an integrated approach, including non-traditional aspects of workers’ health and safety such as drugs and alcohol, stress and HIV/AIDS. The Programme will also make extensive use of gender analysis and planning. There will be strong links within the social protection sector and links with other sectors, programmes and the field. A key component of SafeWork is its global technical cooperation programme. Partnerships with donors will be strengthened to mobilize additional external resources.
Specific strategies are elaborated below for each of four goals, and include advocacy, building of the knowledge base, capacity building for constituents and support for direct action programmes.
Showing that protection pays.
The prevention of accidents, improvement of working conditions and enforcement of standards are often seen as a cost to business. Little is known about the costs of not preventing accidents or poor working conditions, or of the benefits of improvements for productivity and competitiveness. Better information and analytical tools can help increase firms’ and governments’ willingness to invest in prevention. This strategy will have two main thrusts: extending the knowledge base through a major drive for comprehensive, reliable and sustainable data, and new research on the economics of labour protection. The programme will foster the development of a safety culture worldwide. It will thus demonstrate that prevention policies and programmes benefit all ILO constituents.
Protecting workers in hazardous conditions.
Priority must be given to workers in the most hazardous occupations and sectors, such as mining, construction and agriculture, or where working relationships or conditions create particular risks, such as very long working hours, exposure to hazardous chemicals, work in isolation and work by migrants. The ILO will make use of its extensive experience in the development of standards, codes of practice and technical guides in exploiting the world’s information resources, and in developing means of practical action. Member States will be encouraged to set objectives and targets for the protection of workers in hazardous conditions. Particular attention will be given to strengthening the advisory and enforcement capacity of labour inspectorates.
Promoting workers’ health and well-being.
The strategy to promote workers’ health and well-being will involve the establishment of a database on policies, programmes and good enterprise-level practices so as to improve constituents’ capacity to identify workers’ protection issues and to provide guidance on new approaches. Governments’ capacity for prevention, protection, and the application and enforcement of key labour protection instruments will thereby be strengthened.
Extending protection.
The large majority of workers whose conditions are most in need of improvement are excluded from the scope of existing legislation and other protective measures. Existing policies and programmes need to be reviewed to extend their coverage. This will go hand in hand with action to strengthen labour inspectorates’ capacity to develop broad prevention policies and programmes and to promote the protection of vulnerable workers, particularly women workers. Alliances and networks will be extended to include ministries of health, industry, local government, education, and social services, as well as local community groups. Emphasis will also be placed on achieving tangible results through practical action and exchanges of information on good practices.
Major outputs
The major outputs will be the following.
Protecting workers in hazardous jobs:
a World Report on Life and Death at Work, presenting the world situation regarding risks, accidents and diseases, policies and experience, and guidance for future action;
a film on safety and health, focusing on manifestly hazardous conditions;
new standards on safety and health in agriculture through tripartite agreement;
a review of standards on occupational safety and health to determine the action needed to update and possibly consolidate them, and to translate them into practical policy and programmatic tools such as codes of practice and guidelines;
tools and guidance for member States to facilitate the ratification and implementation of ILO standards;
harmonized chemical labelling systems, safety data sheets and hazard communication methods;
guidelines for radiation protection and the classification of radiographs of pneumoconiosis;
a rapid response capacity, especially on chemical safety and health issues, including readily accessible networks and timely information.
Extending protection to all workers:
training programmes and tools for small and medium-sized enterprise owners to promote labour protection and improve productivity;
strengthening the effectiveness, efficiency and coverage of labour inspection systems;
guidelines for the extension of labour protection to informal sector workers;
partnerships with community organizations and others to develop and implement approaches for reaching out to hard-to-reach groups of workers.
Promoting workers’ health and well-being:
a database of policies, programmes and good enterprise-level practices;
training methodologies and diagnostic tools;
guidelines on occupational health care for all; and
programmes to prevent and deal with the effects of workplace problems, including drugs, alcohol and stress.
Showing that protection pays:
a statistical programme to develop new survey tools, carry out national surveys;
better national and global estimates of occupational fatalities and injuries;
report on the economics of accidents and preventive measures;
tools for inspection services to promote the benefits of prevention;
guides on occupational safety and health management systems and safety culture;
tools to reduce work-related environmental damage.
Promoting national and industry-based action:
a global technical cooperation programme on safety, health and the environment;
national and industry-level programmes of action to tackle priority issues.
Annex 8: Note on the background and points for discussions
Background
In response to a need for a strategic approach, the ILO programme and budget preparation exercise was changed recently. The ILO selected eight areas of programmes that require the ILO’s focussed action. The protection of workers’ safety and health was selected as one of the international focus programmes. The programme on occupational safety, health and the environment called SafeWork was launched in October 1999 with the aim of strategically responding to the world’s needs.
The work plan with proposals for the outputs in the coming years was approved by the November 1999 Session of the ILO Governing Body. SafeWork is now working out the detailed work plan. The Interregional Consultation on the ILO SafeWork Programme was organized with a view to obtaining advice for the effective implementation of the programme and to create global partnerships with national and international organizations and institutions.
All the proposed outputs of SafeWork need support and contributions from national and international organizations and institutions. For example, the preparation of the World Report on Life and Death at Work will require contributions from various countries in various forms including statistics, summary reports on current conditions and activities and success stories. Similarly, contributions from developing and industrialized countries are essential in drafting a report on the economics of accidents and preventive measures and in developing guidelines on occupational safety and health management systems.
Technical cooperation projects have been playing a critical role in promoting safety and health programmes in developing countries. The ILO has been implementing technical cooperation projects to support the development of national programmes on occupational safety and health and implementation mechanisms, which will facilitate and support the ratification of ILO Conventions and Recommendations on occupational safety and health. In the 1980s and early 1990s, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was the major source of funding together with multi-bilateral donors. However, contributions from the UNDP have declined substantially and the current technical cooperation projects depend mainly on the contributions from donors such as Denmark and Finland. One major challenge for the SafeWork Programme is how to attract more technical cooperation funds.
SafeWork has to be a dynamic programme with regular contacts with constituents and its partners so as to adjust to the changing needs of the world and to provide quick responses. This consultation was a first step. We foresee the need to develop a practical mechanism to facilitate regular and effective communication and contacts.
Points for Discussions
Priorities
What are your general views on the SafeWork Programme?
Do the proposed goals and strategy respond to the needs of both developing and industrialized countries? What do you propose to add to strengthen the programme?
SafeWork aims to create worldwide awareness of the dimensions and consequences of work-related accidents and diseases. How can we achieve this? What are the effective ways?
Among the proposed major outputs, what would you consider as priorities for developing countries, industrialized countries, or for both?
What kind of outputs would you propose to add for the future programme?
Partnerships
The ILO’s technical and financial resources are limited and require substantial support from various national and international institutions. How can we mobilize the resources of different organizations and institutions for the outputs of SafeWork?
How could national programmes and activities be planned and implemented so as to contribute to SafeWork?
How could SafeWork expand its partnership with national organizations and institutions? (For example, in the United Kingdom, Health and Safety Executive provides in kind contribution to the secretariat work of the ILO work on global harmonization of hazard communication on hazardous chemicals by assigning an official stationed in the UK to work for the ILO.)
What would be the possible means and mechanisms for the participation of national institutions in SafeWork?
What preparatory steps are required for national institutions to take a coordinating role on behalf of SafeWork in the implementation of selected work?
How could SafeWork obtain guidance from constituents and technical institutions on a regular basis?
How can we better build partnerships and alliance for SafeWork?
Resource Mobilization
What actions could SafeWork undertake in order to obtain more financial contributions to the global technical cooperation programme on occupational safety and health and the environment with a view to supporting the programmes in developing countries?
Created/updated by AS, approved by JT. Last updated: 27.05.2005.
