Socio-Cultural Backgrounds of Health and Safety at Work Domyung Paek WHO, Euro, ECEH-Bonn/ Seoul National University

The Rise and Fall of Asbestos Industry and Its Repercussions in Korea Domyung Paek Seoul National University Korea

Phases of Change EXPANSIONFALL PLATEA U Industrial Safety and Health Act of Korea, 1981 First Mesothelioma Case in Korea, 1994

Global Plan of Action on Workers Health Accomplishments, challenges and future strategies

Socio-Cultural Backgrounds of Health and Safety at Work Domyung Paek WHO, Euro, ECEH-Bonn/ Seoul National University

Usually, health and safety measures are regarded as technical programs. Often, economic and time constraints are regarded as the main obstacle to the implementation of program. Rarely, socio-cultural background is conceived as the determinant of health and safety.

East coast of south India, the so called French Rivera of the East

Unless the safety and health is accepted and requested by the people, it is not practiced in the field, even with all the best available technical expertise. Often economic and time constraints are not a problem, when people accepts it as necessary.

In the Citizen’s Police Academy, Constable Reeder and Constable Gibson help Tara put on the Explosive Disposal Unit's Bomb Suit.

Even climate changes over the periods as well as culture

How was the health and safety culture at work in the past?

Slaves…

Soldiers… 産業戰士

Or most commonly, just unfortunate and undeserved ones

Who’s health and safety have got appreciated since then?

Artisans… Trade Medicine

Laborers… Industrial Medicine

Workers… Occupational Medicine

Employees… Environmental Medicine

Or Any Person, including even Soldiers at Work ? An RAF expert from 5131 Bomb Disposal Squadron at work Social Medicine

Why has it been changed since then? How can we measure the difference? Any intermediate stages in this change?

Expansion Phase Shrinkage Phase Plateau Phase Source Exposure Effect Action Repercussions Foreign Investment Administrative Regulation Asbestos Ban Source, Exposure, Effect, and Action (SEEA) Model of Asbestos Industry

Expansion Phase Shrinkage Phase Plateau Phase Source Exposure Effect Action Repercussions Foreign Investment Administrative Regulation Asbestos Ban Source, Exposure, Effect, and Action (SEEA) Model of Asbestos Industry Fragmented Initiatives Developments and Controls Repercussions and Feed backs Another round of system building

Expansion Phase Shrinkage Phase Plateau Phase Source Exposure Effect Action Repercussions Foreign Investment Administrative Regulation Asbestos Ban Source, Exposure, Effect, and Action (SEEA) Model of Asbestos Industry Fragmented Initiatives Developments and Controls Repercussions and Feed backs Another round of system building Input -dominant Stage Process -dominant Stage Output -dominant Stage

Expansion Phase Shrinkage Phase Plateau Phase Source Exposure Effect Action Repercussions Foreign Investment Administrative Regulation Asbestos Ban Industry, Exposure, Effect, and Action Model of Occupational Health and Safety Fragmented Initiatives Developments and Controls Repercussions and Feed backs Another round of system building Input -dominant Stage Process -dominant Stage Output -dominant Stage

Input dominant Process dominant Output dominant Why (objectives) Politics based Economy based Health based Who (participants) Bureaucrats & employers Professionals & labor union added Victims & NGO’s added What (programs) TechnicalManagerialCultural How (deliveries) Code based Labor basedSystem based

Frequently, the health and safety problems are compounded by low technical levels (such as noise monitoring without knowing the source characteristics), disorganized managerial priorities (such as repeated but exactly the same exams and measurements), and lack of sincere objectives (such as safety first only in words, not actions). Where is the main root-cause of the problem?

Subjects workers managers Technical Factors Dangerous Machine Toxic Chemical Micro Managerial Factors Work hour/rest susceptibility education/training Macro Managerial Factors investment/cost organization management/union Invisible Subjects victims NGO’s Hidden Subjects government Interest parties Competing company System Factors prejudice custom/value Assmt Recognition Substitution Protection Training OEM Consulting Campaign Demonstration MSDS Toxic Assmt Epi studies Risk Assmt Audit System Assmt Public notice Policy Assmt

By top-down approach, that is placing the root cause of the problem to the lack of sincere objectives of the current policy makers and system administrators will only change the status up to those points where the current system is not disturbed in terms of its basic operation. Only new requests from the bottom up direction can change the scope and nature of ultimate objectives and ways of the operation beyond the current system.

Subjects workers managers Technical Factors Dangerous Machine Toxic Chemical Micro Managerial Factors Work hour/rest susceptibility education/training Macro Managerial Factors investment/cost organization management/union Invisible Subjects victims NGO’s Hidden Subjects government Interest parties Competing company System Factors prejudice custom/value Assmt Recognition Substitution Protection Training OEM Consulting Campaign Demonstration MSDS Toxic Assmt Epi studies Risk Assmt Audit System Assmt Public notice Policy Assmt

In this sense, it is not ‘what to do’, ‘how to do’, or ‘why to do’, but it is ‘who are involved in this health and safety policy making and administration’. The scope, nature and level of participation of various subjects including the hidden and invisible ones is therefore the key to this change.

Subjects workers managers Technical Factors Dangerous Machine Toxic Chemical Micro Managerial Factors Work hour/rest susceptibility education/training Macro Managerial Factors investment/cost organization management/union Invisible Subjects victims NGO’s Hidden Subjects government Interest parties Competing company System Factors prejudice custom/value Assmt Recognition Substitution Protection Training OEM Consulting Campaign Demonstration MSDS Toxic Assmt Epi studies Risk Assmt Audit System Assmt Public notice Policy Assmt

Key questions are –who are the participants? –how one stage is linked with the subsequent ones? how initiatives can lead to the control of exposures, and how control measures can lead to the identification of victims, and ultimately to the feed-backs? ‘Who?’ questions can give answers to who should be empowered in sequence –Linking the input with process : professionals –Linking the process with the output : victims –Linking the output with the re-input : politicians

Any national or international programs such as WHO improvement projects should target those “who’s”, strategically and sequentially with priorities in mind, by using appropriate education and training (or empowerment) programs corresponding to the appropriate stages and/or profiles of each country.