Brussels, 29/04/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 28 April, the European Commission and International Labour Organisation (ILO) agreed to step up cooperation in the area of health and safety at work. This principled agreement is expected to help develop new initiatives in the future.
The agreement was sealed by European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, László Andor, and ILO Director General, Guy Ryder, in the context of the conference on working conditions organised by the Commission in Brussels. The former said that the EU and ILO were already carrying out “successful joint actions, for example the sustainability compact in Bangladesh”. He also said that they now had to step up their cooperation in order to be, “more effective in our efforts to improve occupational safety and health across the world". Mr Ryder explained that the ILO and the EU have an “outstanding partnership” on safety and health at work and that they would reinforce this cooperation in this area.
The Commission referred to several possible areas of action. Future joint initiatives would therefore be taken in activities, “concerning cooperation in promoting occupational safety and health in emerging economies, implementing the decent work agenda and improving working conditions in global supply chains”. Joint studies can also be carried out by cooperating “in the area of prevention and on data collection on occupational and work-related disease” associated with new technologies and new work organisation patterns. Cooperation will also involve the two organisations promoting, “the active participation of governments, employers' and workers' organisations in the development of occupational safety and health policies and programmes”. (JK)