Brussels, 06/06/2014 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 6 June, the European Commission presented a new strategic framework on health and safety at work (2014-2020).
The framework defines new challenges and proposes non-binding action for the member states in order “to contribute to improving job quality and job satisfaction, while improving the competitiveness and productivity of European companies”.
To illustrate the breadth of the challenge, European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion Laszlo Andor stated that “more than 3 million workers are victims of a serious accident at work every year in the EU and 4,000 workers die in workplace accidents”. The primary objective of the new strategic framework is both to continue fighting the latent risks and to identify new challenges for the EU as regards the evolution of the framework in which European citizens work.
The Commission has therefore identified three major challenges: (1) to improve implementation of existing health and safety rules; (2) to improve the prevention of work-related diseases by tackling new and emerging risks such as nanotechnologies, green technologies and biotechnologies; and (3) to take account of the ageing of the EU's workforce.
The Commission's framework sets out a series of actions to meet these three challenges - actions which would be applied through existing instruments and tools. The member states are asked to consolidate their national strategies by coordinating policies and mutual learning. Small and medium-sized enterprises could benefit from mutual technical assistance and practical tools, such as the Online Interactive Risk Assessment (OiRA), a web platform providing sectoral risk assessment tools. National authorities should evaluate the performance of their national labour inspectorates, while reviewing legislation so as to eliminate unnecessary red tape. Lastly, the Commission asks the member states to improve statistical data collection and strengthen coordination with international organisations.
The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) says it is “disappointed” and has criticised the strategic framework plan which “does not contain any proposal for concrete action or any improvement for health and safety at work” (our translation). In the ETUC's opinion, real progress would have been to propose substantial improvement to current legislation and to table new legislative proposals. (JK)