Developing a prevention culture on workplace level: the perspective from workers viewpoint

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Developing a prevention culture on workplace
level the perspective from workers viewpoint
Viktor Kempa, Working Conditions, Health Safety
Department European Trade Union Institute
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89/391/EEC Framework Directive on the
introduction of measures to encourage
improvements in the safety and health of workers
at work
Using of the work equipment
89/655/EEC Work Equipment (2)
Specific group of workers 92/85/EEC Pregnant
and breastfeeding workers and worker who have
recently given birth (10)


Specific activities 90/269/EEC Manual Handling
of Loads (4) 90/270/EEC Display Screen
Equipments (5) 92/91/EEC Drilling (11)
Personal protection 89/656/EEC Personal
Protective Equipment (3)
Exposure to agents 90/394/EEC Carcinogens
(6) 2000/54/EC Biological Agents (7) 98/24/EC
Chemical Agents (14) 2000/44/EC Vibrations
(16) 2003/10/EC Noise (17) 2004/40/EC Electromag
netic Fields (18)
Workplace 89/654/EEC Workplace (1) 92/57/EEC
Temporary/Mobile Construction Sites
(8) 92/58/EEC Safety and/or Health Signs
(9) 92/104/EEC Surface and Underground
Mineral-extracting Industries (12) 93/103/EC
Fishing Vessel (13) 1999/92/EC Explosive
Atmospheres (15)
2000/39/EC Indicative occupational exposure limit
values
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What is in game?

• Policy Strategy
• Legislation Principles
• Institutions Agencies (tripartite)
• Social dialogue (European Framework Agrements)
• Guidelines Codes of Practice
• Standards
• National transpositions and implementations

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Presentation outline

• Definitions
• Role of workers and worker participation in
  developing a preventive culture
• How to measure a quality of prevention culture?

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Definitions

• Prevention culture the ways in which OHS is
  managed in the workplace, and often reflects "the
  attitudes, beliefs, perceptions and values that
  both partners share in relation to OHS
• Prevention culture vs. workplace democracy
  (including voting system, debates, democratic
  structuring, due process, adversarial process)
• Social dialogue
• Worker participation methods, procedures,
  actors, representation
• Direct vs. Representative
• Trade Unions, Work Councils, Mix, Worker Reps
• Joint HS Committee, Coll. agreements, Specific
  agreements (election of Reps, rights to info,
  consult, particip, or codecision)

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Worker participation methods, procedures,
actors,

• Direct vs. Representative model
• Trade Unions, Work Councils, Mix, Worker Reps
• Joint HS Committees
• Coll. Agreements
• Specific agreements
• Legislative rights
• (Workers, Reps, ICP)

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Culture is a combination of an organization's

• Attitudes
• Behaviors
• Beliefs
• Values
• Ways of doing things, and
• Other shared characteristics of a particular
  group of people.

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A strong prevention culture is the result of

• Commitment and leadership of management
• Positive workplace attitudes
• Support to worker participation in OHS
• Mutual, meaningful, and measurable OHS goals
• Policies and procedures that serve as reference
  tools
• Training at all levels within the organization
• Responsibility and accountability throughout the
  organization

Multi-Country Workshop on Developing Systems for
Occupational Health and Safety through Social
Dialogue Mercure Brussels Center Louise,
Brussels, Belgium Dates 18-19 February 2013
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Basic questions to be raised at the beginning

• Have you introduced a policy on OHS in your
  company?
• Is there any agreement between company and
  workers on a creation and maintaining of this
  policy?
• Have you introduced any system of OHSM?
• Are the workers involved satisfactorily in the
  OHSMS?
• Is there indirect participation of workers in
  your company?
• Are there exact and defined procedures for
  information and consultation of workers in your
  company?

vkempa_at_etui/2013
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Questionnaire / Test

• For example divided into net chapters
• Management commitment
• Communication
• Worker participation
• Training/Information
• Compliance with procedures
• Learning organisation

vkempa_at_etui/2013
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Questions to be asked
Source HSE
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Questions to be asked
Source HSE
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vkempa_at_etui.org (2012)
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vkempa_at_etui.org (2012)
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vkempa_at_etui.org (2012)
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Key principles of the EU OHS law

• Prevention first! (proactive rather than
  retroactive compensation)
• Employers' responsibility
• Hierarchy of prevention measures
• Continuous improvement (OHSM)
• Health AND Safety
• Social dialogue workers' participation (ICP)
• Multidisciplinarity of prevention services

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Hierarchy of prevention measures
? Avoid/eliminate the hazards ? Evaluate the
risks that cannot be avoided ? Substitute
dangerous by less dangerous ? Combat risks at
source ? Adapt the work to the individual ?
Adapt to technical progress ? Develop a coherent
overall prevention policy ? Give collective
protective measures priority ? Give appropriate
instructions
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An efficient prevention at the workplace

• Comitted employers
• Recognize the problem!
• Risk assessment management
• Assess the risk on participatory basis!
• Hierarchy of preventive measures
• Remove the hazard first!
• Technical and organisational measures
• Use a feedback from the workplace!
• Social dialogue at the workplace
• Talk to and listen to Workers HS Reps!
• Concerted cooperation of all the actors
• Identify, evaluate and combat the risks using
  synergy of knowledge and powers!

Participation
Multidisciplinarity
Comprehensiveness
vkempa_at_etui/2013
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Thank you for your attention!

• vkempa_at_etui.org