Adopted by the Government, Resolution No.257 on December, 1997

 Mongolia is the country implementing tasks aiming at creation of multi-structural economy in accordance with the common approach and tendency of the global development. As of the present situation, 769,6 thousand people are engaged, in an approximate number of 30 thousand economic entities and organizations operating in the field of creating material wealth. Privatization process has been carried out in conformity with the certain programme and as a result of emerging a owner of a property the Government's role and type of intervention in activities of economic entities have been considerably changed. In this connection, there have been occurring changes in property and labour relations. During this transition period to a market economy, a private property sector has been newly established. The new labour relations are based on relations of legislative bodies having mutually equal rights and merely 14,2 percent concluded collective agreement, 75 percent labour regulations and 57,1 percent concluded a contract of employment among economic entities covered in the 1997 State Survey. As seen from the fact that economic entities and organizations are not meeting the requirements in respect of labour regulations in this situation.

In connection with the growing demand in overseas materials, raw materials and chemical substances import of advanced technique and introduction of new technology is currently being increased. Almost 10270 (in duplicate figure) items of chemical substances are being used in industries and economic entities covered in the State Survey, and evaporation rate of chemical substances is high than allowed by the occupational health standards in 39,5 per cent of workplaces using chemical substances. There are no regulations and rules existing in regard of import, transportation, storage and use of chemical substances in economic entities and organizations, and activities on registration and inspection upon their utilization are not being undertaken. It has been detected that 37,5 percent of workplaces, at which flammable and explosive chemicals are used, own no adequate storage place, and 22,4 percent have no any utilization instructions and rules.

In the present situation when industrial and labour management, organization and inspecting system are abolished and legislative basis for new social relations is not yet created. it is expected that violations of and non-abidance with labour law, rules, regulations and standards on Occupational Safety and Health and incidence of health damage, industrial accident and occupational diseases are likely be to increased. At the present, it is impossible to carry out the related activities to the appropriate extent due to lack of professional staff dealing with occupational safety and health management and inspection, insufficiency of measuring tools at workplace, and obsolete state of laboratory equipment for conducting research works and investigations. Therefore. it emerges as confronted task to strengthen material basis of laboratories in organizations dealing with inspection upon working conditions, to undertake surveys and research works and to create occupational safety and health database network.

Starting from 1990 Tripartite Agreement on Social Consensus has begun to be concluded between the Government. Workers' and Employers' organizations, thus having created a new mechanism for addressing and solving the urgent issues concerning labour relations, with inclusion of occupational safety in the new situation.

Nowadays it becomes common that safety activities are getting worse as a result of abolishing occupational safety and health services and officials in the central and provincial level during the recent years.

1997 State survey on definition of occupational safety and health level has evidenced that 18,7 percent of the total number of workers work under inappropriate conditions with inclusion of 58,8 percent in energy, 47,1 percent in mining, 22,6 percent in construction and 19,1 percent in transportation respectively.

It is a fact that 65,6 per cent of equipment being used in economic entities and enterprises have been operated for more than 10 years and no longer meet technological requirements, and according to unofficial data, in the last 3 years there have been 832 incidences of industrial accident in 8,4 per cent or 417 economic entities, having affected a total number of 866 people with inclusion of 56 cases of death, 59-of disability and 810 - of temporary loosing of working abilities. Amongst industrial accidents 71,9 per cent have occurred in the fields of mining, light and food industry, energy, construction and transportation. In 1996 the number of people affected by industrial accidents is more than by 1,3 times and death cases are more than by 3,2 times as compared to 1994.

Preventive measures are insufficient on complete determination of causes, conditions and of damage amount, and liability machinery for guilty people is still weak. It is necessary to adopt a new regulation in respect of investigating of and registration of incidences of industrial accident and acute poisoning.

Activities are not carried out to the satisfied extent to protect worker' health and to prevent from occupational diseases. Amongst economic entities and enterprises covered in the survey just 5,6 percent have shopfloor and emergency doctors, 8,7 percent work on a contract with some medical organizations and in merely 36,7 percent workers are covered in a medical examination at the initial stage of their employment.

In 1994, cases of occupational disease rate grew by 16,5 percent compared to 1996.

As a result of considering occupational diseases by causes chronic bronchitis took place 57,4 percent, pneumoconiosis - 18,7 percent, mental disorders - 6,1 percent and poisoning by chemical substances - 8,2 percent respectively. It should be effective if results of activities to improve working conditions to be considered in close relation with the aim to reduce occupational diseases and industrial accidents.

An approximate percentage of 14,0 workers of economic entities and organizations are not supplied with special and protective clothing, most of which are out of use due to inadequate quality. At the state level, activities of abidance by standards on workcloth and protective facilities, and on adoption of the list of safety conditions consistent with the working conditions are not coming up with actual requirements. The above problem should be addressed and solved in the way of improving the situation by setting up of factories and sections to produce workcloth by the economic entities and by putting into operation of shopfloors to deal with cleaning and repairing.

I. Programme Purpose is laid in implementing the Constitutional provisions enshrining rights of a citizen to live in a healthy and safe environment and be provided for favorable working conditions; in determining occupational safety and health policy and action direction; ensuring normal working conditions at workplace, as well as in reducing the cases of occupational diseases and industrial accident.

1. Create legislative basis for occupational safety and health issues, develop and elaborate legislative acts.

2. Upgrade vocational skills of officials in the central and local level by developing occupational safety and health management, organization and inspecting system, elaborate scientific basis for determining working conditions by strengthening material basis of laboratories to investigate and research working conditions at workplace.
3. Enhance participation of trade unions' and employers' organizations in occupational safety and health -related activities.
4. Create occupational safety and health database network, enrich the database and conduct inspection, training, survey and research activities based upon actual database sources.
5. Ensure reliable operation of equipment, and follow the principles on carrying out industrial activities using equipment and facilities satisfied with occupational safety and health requirements.
6. Reduce incidences of industrial accidents, acute poisoning and occupational diseases in the manner of building up favourable occupational safety and health conditions at workplace.
7. Develop training system to enable management, workers and all the citizens to acquire knowledge in regard of occupational safety and health.
8. Improve provision for special workcloth and protective facilities satisfactory with standardized requirements protecting from impact of negative factors of working conditions.
9. Enhance responsibilities of management, economic entities and organizations in the central and local level in ensuring and financing capital sources required for occupational safety and health measures.

I. Measures to be taken by the Government

1. Promote participation in activities of the National Tripartite Committee (non-permanent) responsible for formulating and implementing occupational safety and health policy, as well as of its constituent councils.

2. Renew and re-design the Rule on State Labour Inspection, Rule on investigation and registration of industrial accident and acute poisoning.

3. Intensify application of occupational safety and health legislative acts.

4. Widely intervene the state and governmental mass media in advocating the National Programme and in ensuring citizens' provision for occupational safety and health information.

1. Investigate the possibilities to ratify the following ILO Conventions:

2. Activities shall be carried out application of the provisions of the ILO Convention No.155 concerning Occupational Safety and Health and Industrial Environment, 1981
3. Develop legislative relations in respect of occupational safety and health and make amendments and alterations in the legislation as the case requires.
4. Re-design and develop occupational safety and health-related rules, regulations, guidance and methodology.
5. Set tip concrete management and inspection system in terms of territorial level for state organizations and their units in charge of labour issues, and promote legislative co-ordination of their activities.
6. Organize seminars, forums and workshops at the state, regional and sectoral level, as well as international symposiums and scientific conferences in respect of priority issues on occupational safety and health.
7. Implement activities on a step-by-step basis focused on provision for the latest sophisticated equipment and other facilities and on earlier diagnosing of occupational diseases.
8. Re-design the Regulation concerning granting compensation for those workers who temporarily lost working abilities due to industrial accident.
9. Strengthen labour inspection services in terms of personnel and material basis.
10. Promote co-operation with the international organizations in the field of improving occupational safety and health conditions and strengthening material basis
11. Ensure occupational safety and health requirements and standards and set up a system encouraging economic entities and organizations operating without incidence of industrial accident, acute poisoning and occupational disease for the duration of many years.

2. Formulate and abide by legislative act on reflection and planning of occupational safety and health -related expenses of state-budgeted organizations in annual budget of the certain year