1. Union Action and Methodology of Prevention
Trade Union Training on the Validation of the training manual entitled “Union Training on Occupational Safety and Health”
Union Action and Methodology of Prevention

2. Union Philosophy Regarding OSH
Fundamental problems of workers’ safety and health are not technical but tied to power relations and control between workers and management.
Workers’ participation in the development and implementation of OSH programmes is critical to their success.
OSH programmes must have strong enforcement and penalties large enough to have strong deterrent effect.

3. Union Philosophy Regarding OSH
Work injuries are primarily caused by unsafe conditions not workers’ behaviour.
Workers’ knowledge of rights and willingness to use them are key to safer working conditions.
Meeting OSH standards is not good enough: should strive for hazard elimination.

4. Are Technical Solutions Enough?
Unions argue that while technical solutions to OSH problems are essential, they are insufficient to provide a safe and healthy work environment: other factors such as:
- Active workers’ involvement
- Workers’ ability to refuse hazardous work and to exercise other safety & health rights are critical.

5. Workers’ Right to take Action
Right to refuse dangerous work: must be a real right, not just on paper.
Right to file a complaint and get an inspection without fear of retaliation.
Right to accompany an inspector on a tour of the workplace.
Right to obtain information on hazards of materials with which they work.

6. Legal Rights and Union Backing
Unions argue that rights are meaningless without adequate enforcement: in most non-union workplaces, legal rights are impossible to enforce.
Better protections often available through union contracts than through OSH law.

7. Workers’ Participation is Essential
Workers must be involved in every aspect of the development and implementation of OSH programmes to ensure their success.
Many studies have supported the labour view that workers’ participation is key for safety and health as well as quality of work.
Workers must not be merely “window dressing” on joint safety and health committees, but must have meaningful roles and believe that they can influence policies and practices.

8. What Does Union Action Imply?
Union OSH Representatives:
Knowlegeability about workplace safety and health policy and programmes
Capability of making proposals on OSH on behalf of union members
Commitment to encourage workers’ participation into preventative action at the enterprise level including:
- Undertaking awareness raising and sensitization campaigns on preventative culture.
- Urging workers to demand their right to participate in OSH decision making bodies.
- Ensuring that workers have access to relevant safety and health training opportunities.
- Demanding the provision of personal protective equipment (PPE) to workers and ensuring the effective use by workers of such equipment.

9. Union Action in the Workplace: Acting with Method
Making effective workers’ rights to:
- Know
- Compliant
- Refuse dangerous work
- Access information
- Consult
- Negotiate
Identifying risks and threats to safety and health:
- Inspect workplaces and job centres
- Investigate risk, work accidents and occupational diseases
- Systematically collect the workers’ view
Evaluating the importance of the problems:
- Be informed of the risks and harm related to tasks and occupations
- Know the reference legislation
- Prioritize issues according to their relevance.

10. Union Action in the Workplace: Acting with Method
Inform workers:
- Inform on hazards and their preventions
- Disseminate results of risk assessment
- Advice and provide guidance to specific problems
- Discuss proposals for improvement of their own stakeholders
Propose solutions:
- Consider technical alternatives to the problem
- Negotiate plans and measures to take
- Denounce employers’ violation
Follow-up on the agreements and check that they meet the objectives

11. Union OSH Representatives’ Tools
Head: think of solutions
Ear: listen to the worker
Eye: watch to work contions
Mouth: argue the proposals
Stomach: persist in strategies
Hands: get support
Feet: walk throuth the work posts
12/10/2018

12. Management Functions Planning: pre-determining a course of action.
Organising: arranging and relating the work to be done so that it can be done most effectively.
Leading: creating the climate that causes people to take effective action.
Controlling: measuring and relating performance and results.

13. Management Functions Planning Organising Leadership
Controlling Implementing
Direction
structure
measurement
Results

14. Basic Employers’ Responsibilities
Comply with detailed requirements that are in OSH legislation and regulations.
Develop OSH policy and prevention programmes in collaboration with their employees.
Assess, eliminate and control hazards.
Inform workers of hazards.
Provide training to workers.
Work with joint labour-management safety and health committees and safety and health representatives.

15. Traditional VS Modern OSH Management System
Traditional OSH Management
Focus on the root cause of the accidents and diseases
Develop preventative measure for future action
Near misses, at-risk behaviors, and other upstream measures are tracked, recorded and improved.
Proactive and preventive
Consider safety as a part of all functions.
Tend to be system-oriented
Investigate to find the root causes of work-related accidents and diseases.
Safety and health are values: life is a value.
Safety and health are more towards behavior
Safety and health are everybody’s responsibility
Focus on injuries and illnesses.
A narrow review of accidents and diseases are taken
Near misses, at-risk behaviors, and other upstream measures are not tracked or understood.
Tend to be reactive, not preventive.
Consider safety and health as a separate function.
Tend to be project-oriented
Tend to blame the workers for accidents and diseases
Safety and health are priorities
Safety and health are confined to rules and procedures
Emphasis on discipline and top-down control

16. Any questions?