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Community programme concerning safety, hygiene and health at work (1996-2000)
1) OBJECTIVE
Adapt Community policy in the field of safety and health at work to the profound changes resulting from the development of science and technology.
2) COMMUNITY MEASURE
Communication from the Commission of 12 July 1995 on a Community programme concerning safety, hygiene and health at work (1996-2000)
3) CONTENT
Almost 8 000 workers die each year as a result of accidents at work and approximately 10 million people are victims of occupational accidents or diseases. Work accidents and occupational diseases also adversely affect productivity and the growth of employment.
The objective of the Commission's policy in the field of safety and health at work during the past 30 years has been to minimise the number of accidents at work and occupational diseases.
Hence, since 1978 the Commission has mounted three action programmes, the last of which featured three fundamental strands:
The Community's activities in the framework of these action programmes were mainly of a legislative nature, with the adoption of minimum health and safety requirements with a view to completing the internal market and ensuring freedom of movement for workers.
The goal was to reduce risks by adopting a raft of directives, especially in certain sectors considered to be particularly hazardous, and to protect "vulnerable" workers.
Information was one of the priorities of these programmes, as reflected in two major initiatives:
In order to improve worker protection in the Community, the Commission decided to mount a new action programme that extends the preceding action programmes and draws on a wider range of instruments.
The new programme consists of three parts:
This programme lays down the framework for current and future activities for a five-year period from 1 January 1996 to 31 December 2000.
4) deadline for implementation of the legislation in the member states
Not applicable
5) date of entry into force (if different from the above)
6) references
Commission Communication COM(95) 282 final CNS 950155Not published in the Official Journal
7) follow-up work
On 3 September 1998 the Commission adopted an interim report on the Community programme in the field of safety, hygiene and health at work (1996-2000) [COM(98) 511 final - not published in the Official Journal].
The report presents the activities implemented under the Community programme in 1996-1998:
For the second phase of the programme (1998-2000), the Commission has presented its revised priorities in the field of safety and health at work:
- Reinforce the effectiveness of Community legislation:
- Prepare for enlargement:
- Develop the link with employability: the quality of employees' work depends in large measure on their working conditions. Improvement of employability focuses on two priorities:
- Ensure good working conditions in a period of change characterised by: expansion of the tertiary sector, the feminisation and ageing of the active population, and the development of new forms of work organisation associated with new risks. For example, the expansion of the tertiary sector has led to a reduction in accidents at work but there has been an increase in the incidence of stress-induced health problems.
The Commission proposes to:
8) commission implementing measures
Decision - C(2000) 1368 [not published in the Official Journal]
On 23 May 2000, the Commission adopted a decision relating to the first phase of consultation with the social partners, conforming to Article 138(2) of the EC Treaty on health and security protection at work for the self-employed.