Luxembourg, 20/10/2003 (Agence Europe) - The Employment and Social Policy Council of the EU (EPSCO) meeting on 20 October in Luxembourg under the chairmanship of Roberto Maroni unanimously reached a political agreement on the draft directive establishing the minimum safety and health conditions relating to worker exposure to physical agents (electromagnetic waves and fields). Mr Maroni said he was very pleased with this move forward allowing better health and safety protection for workers exposed to such risks.
The new proposal (the first had been presented in 1993 and the Parliament had at the time taken a stance on the issue) only covers short-term exposure for now, as there is no scientific proof of the "cause and effect" link over the long term in practice. The directive is part of a "package" of directives aimed at protecting the health and safety of workers exposed to risks at their place of work. Two of the directives have already been adopted concerning exposure to noise and exposure to vibrations. The Commission will be proposing the fourth directive of the package dealing with optical radiation next year.
The Parliament will also give a stance in second reading on the new text approved on Monday. The text requires, among other things, that employers do what is necessary to protect their workers from the risks that they entail further to exposure to electricity generators, radio and television aerials, radar installations and ovens of the kind used in the metallurgy sector for melting metal, and also portable phones.
Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou warmly congratulated the Italian Presidency for the political agreement reached in Luxembourg. Nonetheless, in her view, this political agreement weakens Article 8 of the text on the health surveillance of persons. The Commissioner believes Article 8 should have been more forceful with far more detail concerning the aim and the scope of such surveillance. Ms Diamantopoulou's declaration was annexed to the Council's minutes.