1. Laurent Vogel ETUI February 2013
The role of the social partners in developing and implementing Occupational Health and Safety policies and strategies
Laurent Vogel
ETUI
February 2013

2. Health and Safety is never a purely technical question
Huge gap between existing knowledge and practical prevention
Being affected by bad working conditions: a question of social inequality
Collective action of workers: a key element for any OSH strategy

3. Workers exposed to carcinogens and prevention measures carried out at the workplace (SUMER 2003, France)
Exposed
Among the exposed workers: without collective prevention
ALL THE WORKERS
13.5
42.3
CONSTRUCTION
INDUSTRY
AGRICULTURE
SERVICES
34.9
21.2
21.9
8.7
51.8
33.9
77.8
40.9
Higher/Managerial occupations
Intermediate occupations
Qualified blue collar workers
Not qualified blue collar workers
3,3
11,1
30.9
22.5
24,0
35,0
43.6
47.1

4. Sustainable work? Do you think you will be able to do your current job when you are 60 years old? YES (EWCS)
2000
2005
2010
High skilled White collar
67.6
70.1
71.7
+4,1
Low skilled White collar
59.3
62.2
61.3 +2
High skilled Blue collar
52.0
48.4
49.3
-2,7
Low skilled Blue collar
46.2
45.7
44.1
-2,1
Total
57.1
58.3
58.7
+1,6

5. Evidence on « what works »
Links between Safety reps and an effective OSH policy in companies
Results tend to be mediated by unionization
“Direct consultation is likely to have disappointing results for the individual non-unionized worker” (David Walters)

6. Data from ESENER suggest
Risk assessment is more likely if there are safety reps, especially in small firms
Combination of high management commitment with worker representation is strongly associated with better management of psychosocial issues
Huge differences between countries, especially in companies from 10 to 249 (companies with less than 10 workers were not covered by the survey

7. Why safety reps are so important
Autonomy : opposition of social interests mainly when there are long term effects. Creating a counter-power at company level
Promotion of workers self-activities (against imposing prevention from outside)
Importance of workers collective knowledge

8. Workplace democracy ? Employee representation by country, EWCS 2010, Index
51,7 %
EU 27
More than 85%
Finland (86,5), Sweden
From 70 to 80%
Denmark, Luxembourg
From 60 to 70%
Belgium, Netherlands
From 50 to 60%
RO, UK, SK, Ireland, FR, SL, CY
From 45 to 50%
Poland, Spain, Hungary, Germany, Czech R
From 40 to 45%
Italy, Lithuania
From 35 to 40%
Latvia, Bulgaria, Greece
From 30 to 35%
Estonia
Less than 25%
Portugal (24,7)

9. What could be done in the next Strategy
All the workers should have access to safety reps independently from the size of companies or the employment contracts (combine company level safety reps with territorial or site reps)
The percentage of workers covered by safety reps should be considered as an indicator of the OSH structures
Consolidate the links between safety reps, labour inspection and preventive services

10. A precondition Avoid the Better Regulation demagogy on SME’s
When it is about OSH issues, SME’s workers should have the same rights, the same level of protection and the same possibilities to intervene

11. Social dialogue and OSH strategy in the EU
Intersectoral social dialogue
Agreement on stress (2004)
Agreement on violence at work (2007)
Sectoral social dialogue
Rich experience in different sectors
The agreement on needlestick injuries (became a Directive in 2010)
The agreement for hairdressers was signed in 2012 (should become a Directive according to the social partners … but opposition from different member states)