"In accordance with the Joint
Declaration of the Government of the People's Republic of China and the
Government of the Republic of Portugal on the Question of Macao (hereinafter
referred to as the Joint Declaration), the Government of the People's Republic
of China will resume the exercise of sovereignty over Macao with effect from 20
December 1999. Macao will, from that date, become a Special Administrative
Region of the People's Republic of China and will enjoy a high degree of autonomy,
except in foreign and defence affairs which are the responsibilities of the
Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China.
It is provided both in section VIII of
Elaboration by the Government of the People's Republic of China of its Basic
Policies Regarding Macao, which is Annex I to the Joint Declaration, and
Article 138 of the Basic Law of the Macao Special Administrative Region of the
People's Republic of China, which was adopted on 31 March 1993 by the National
People's Congress of the People's Republic of China, that international
agreements to which the People's Republic of China is not yet a party but which
are implemented in Macao may continue to be implemented in the Macao Special
Administrative Region.
In accordance with the above provisions, I
am instructed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of
China to inform Your Excellency of the following:
Convention concerning Occupational Safety
and Health and Working Environment (No. 155), adopted at Geneva on 22 June 1981
(hereinafter referred to as the "Convention"), which applies to Macao
at present, will continue to apply to the Macao Special Administrative Region
with effect from 20 December 1999.
The Government of the People's Republic of
China will assume the responsibility for the international rights and
obligations arising from the application of the Convention to the Macao Special
Administrative Region."
Convention concerning Occupational Safety
and Health and the Working Environment
(ILO No. 155)
(Adopted at Geneva on 22
June 1981)
The General
Conference of the International Labour Organisation,
Having been
convened at Geneva by the Governing Body of the International Labour Office,
and having met in its Sixty-seventh Session on 3 June 1981, and
Having decided upon
the adoption of certain proposals with regard to safety and health and the
working environment, which is the sixth item on the agenda of the session, and
Having determined
that these proposals shall take the form of an international Convention,
adopts this
twenty-second day of June of the year one thousand nine hundred and eighty-one
the following Convention, which may be cited as the Occupational Safety and
Health Convention, 1981:
PART I. SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS
Article 1
1. This Convention
applies to all branches of economic activity.
2. A Member
ratifying this Convention may, after consultation at the earliest possible
stage with the representative organisations of employers and workers concerned,
exclude from its application, in part or in whole, particular branches of
economic activity, such as maritime shipping or fishing, in respect of which
special problems of a substantial nature arise.
3. Each Member
which ratifies this Convention shall list, in the first report on the application
of the Convention submitted under Article 22 of the Constitution of the
International Labour Organisation, any branches which may have been excluded in
pursuance of paragraph 2 of this Article, giving the reasons for such exclusion
and describing the measures taken to give adequate protection to workers in
excluded branches, and shall indicate in subsequent reports any progress
towards wider application.
Article 2
1. This Convention
applies to all workers in the branches of economic activity covered.
2. A Member
ratifying this Convention may, after consultation at the earliest possible
stage with the representative organisations of employers and workers concerned,
exclude from its application, in part or in whole, limited categories of
workers in respect of which there are particular difficulties.
3. Each Member
which ratifies this Convention shall list, in the first report on the
application of the Convention submitted under Article 22 of the Constitution of
the International Labour Organisation, any limited categories of workers which
may have been excluded in pursuance of paragraph 2 of this Article, giving the
reasons for such exclusion, and shall indicate in subsequent reports any
progress towards wider application.
Article 3
For the purpose of
this Convention--
(a) the term branches
of economic activity covers all branches in which workers are employed,
including the public service;
(b) the term workers
covers all employed persons, including public employees;
(c) the term workplace
covers all places where workers need to be or to go by reason of their
work and which are under the direct or indirect control of the employer;
(d) the term regulations
covers all provisions given force of law by the competent authority or
authorities;
(e) the term health
, in relation to work, indicates not merely the absence of disease or
infirmity; it also includes the physical and mental elements affecting health
which are directly related to safety and hygiene at work.
PART II. PRINCIPLES OF NATIONAL POLICY
Article 4
1. Each Member
shall, in the light of national conditions and practice, and in consultation
with the most representative organisations of employers and workers, formulate,
implement and periodically review a coherent national policy on occupational
safety, occupational health and the working environment.
2. The aim of the
policy shall be to prevent accidents and injury to health arising out of,
linked with or occurring in the course of work, by minimising, so far as is
reasonably practicable, the causes of hazards inherent in the working
environment.
Article 5
The policy referred
to in Article 4 of this Convention shall take account of the following main
spheres of action in so far as they affect occupational safety and health and
the working environment:
(a) design,
testing, choice, substitution, installation, arrangement, use and maintenance
of the material elements of work (workplaces, working environment, tools,
machinery and equipment, chemical, physical and biological substances and agents,
work processes);
(b) relationships
between the material elements of work and the persons who carry out or
supervise the work, and adaptation of machinery, equipment, working time,
organisation of work and work processes to the physical and mental capacities
of the workers;
(c) training,
including necessary further training, qualifications and motivations of persons
involved, in one capacity or another, in the achievement of adequate levels of
safety and health;
(d) communication
and co-operation at the levels of the working group and the undertaking and at
all other appropriate levels up to and including the national level;
(e) the protection
of workers and their representatives from disciplinary measures as a result of
actions properly taken by them in conformity with the policy referred to in
Article 4 of this Convention.
Article 6
The formulation of
the policy referred to in Article 4 of this Convention shall indicate the
respective functions and responsibilities in respect of occupational safety and
health and the working environment of public authorities, employers, workers
and others, taking account both of the complementary character of such
responsibilities and of national conditions and practice.
Article 7
The situation
regarding occupational safety and health and the working environment shall be
reviewed at appropriate intervals, either over-all or in respect of particular
areas, with a view to identifying major problems, evolving effective methods
for dealing with them and priorities of action, and evaluating results.
PART III. ACTION AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL
Article 8
Each Member shall,
by laws or regulations or any other method consistent with national conditions
and practice and in consultation with the representative organisations of employers
and workers concerned, take such steps as may be necessary to give effect to
Article 4 of this Convention.
Article 9
1. The enforcement
of laws and regulations concerning occupational safety and health and the
working environment shall be secured by an adequate and appropriate system of
inspection.
2. The enforcement
system shall provide for adequate penalties for violations of the laws and
regulations.
Article 10
Measures shall be
taken to provide guidance to employers and workers so as to help them to comply
with legal obligations.
Article 11
To give effect to
the policy referred to in Article 4 of this Convention, the competent authority
or authorities shall ensure that the following functions are progressively
carried out:
(a) the determination,
where the nature and degree of hazards so require, of conditions governing the
design, construction and layout of undertakings, the commencement of their
operations, major alterations affecting them and changes in their purposes, the
safety of technical equipment used at work, as well as the application of
procedures defined by the competent authorities;
(b) the
determination of work processes and of substances and agents the exposure to
which is to be prohibited, limited or made subject to authorisation or control
by the competent authority or authorities; health hazards due to the
simultaneous exposure to several substances or agents shall be taken into
consideration;
(c) the
establishment and application of procedures for the notification of occupational
accidents and diseases, by employers and, when appropriate, insurance
institutions and others directly concerned, and the production of annual
statistics on occupational accidents and diseases;
(d) the holding of
inquiries, where cases of occupational accidents, occupational diseases or any
other injuries to health which arise in the course of or in connection with
work appear to reflect situations which are serious;
(e) the
publication, annually, of information on measures taken in pursuance of the
policy referred to in Article 4 of this Convention and on occupational
accidents, occupational diseases and other injuries to health which arise in
the course of or in connection with work;
(f) the
introduction or extension of systems, taking into account national conditions
and possibilities, to examine chemical, physical and biological agents in
respect of the risk to the health of workers.
Article 12
Measures shall be
taken, in accordance with national law and practice, with a view to ensuring that
those who design, manufacture, import, provide or transfer machinery, equipment
or substances for occupational use--
(a) satisfy
themselves that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the machinery, equipment
or substance does not entail dangers for the safety and health of those using
it correctly;
(b) make available
information concerning the correct installation and use of machinery and
equipment and the correct use of substances, and information on hazards of
machinery and equipment and dangerous properties of chemical substances and
physical and biological agents or products, as well as instructions on how
known hazards are to be avoided;
(c) undertake
studies and research or otherwise keep abreast of the scientific and technical
knowledge necessary to comply with subparagraphs (a) and (b) of this Article.
Article 13
A worker who has
removed himself from a work situation which he has reasonable justification to
believe presents an imminent and serious danger to his life or health shall be
protected from undue consequences in accordance with national conditions and
practice.
Article 14
Measures shall be
taken with a view to promoting in a manner appropriate to national conditions
and practice, the inclusion of questions of occupational safety and health and
the working environment at all levels of education and training, including
higher technical, medical and professional education, in a manner meeting the
training needs of all workers.
Article 15
1. With a view to
ensuring the coherence of the policy referred to in Article 4 of this
Convention and of measures for its application, each Member shall, after
consultation at the earliest possible stage with the most representative
organisations of employers and workers, and with other bodies as appropriate,
make arrangements appropriate to national conditions and practice to ensure the
necessary co-ordination between various authorities and bodies called upon to
give effect to Parts II and III of this Convention.
2. Whenever
circumstances so require and national conditions and practice permit, these
arrangements shall include the establishment of a central body.
PART IV. ACTION AT THE LEVEL OF THE
UNDERTAKING
Article 16
1. Employers shall
be required to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the
workplaces, machinery, equipment and processes under their control are safe and
without risk to health.
2. Employers shall
be required to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the chemical,
physical and biological substances and agents under their control are without
risk to health when the appropriate measures of protection are taken.
3. Employers shall
be required to provide, where necessary, adequate protective clothing and
protective equipment to prevent, so far is reasonably practicable, risk of
accidents or of adverse effects on health.
Article 17
Whenever two or
more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace, they
shall collaborate in applying the requirements of this Convention.
Article 18
Employers shall be
required to provide, where necessary, for measures to deal with emergencies and
accidents, including adequate first-aid arrangements.
Article 19
There shall be
arrangements at the level of the undertaking under which--
(a) workers, in the
course of performing their work, co-operate in the fulfilment by their employer
of the obligations placed upon him;
(b) representatives
of workers in the undertaking co-operate with the employer in the field of
occupational safety and health;
(c) representatives
of workers in an undertaking are given adequate information on measures taken
by the employer to secure occupational safety and health and may consult their
representative organisations about such information provided they do not
disclose commercial secrets;
(d) workers and
their representatives in the undertaking are given appropriate training in
occupational safety and health;
(e) workers or
their representatives and, as the case may be, their representative
organisations in an undertaking, in accordance with national law and practice,
are enabled to enquire into, and are consulted by the employer on, all aspects
of occupational safety and health associated with their work; for this purpose
technical advisers may, by mutual agreement, be brought in from outside the
undertaking;
(f) a worker
reports forthwith to his immediate supervisor any situation which he has
reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to
his life or health; until the employer has taken remedial action, if necessary,
the employer cannot require workers to return to a work situation where there
is continuing imminent and serious danger to life or health.
Article 20
Co-operation
between management and workers and/or their representatives within the undertaking
shall be an essential element of organisational and other measures taken in
pursuance of Articles 16 to 19 of this Convention.
Article 21
Occupational safety
and health measures shall not involve any expenditure for the workers.
PART V. FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 22
This Convention
does not revise any international labour Conventions or Recommendations.
Article 23
The formal
ratifications of this Convention shall be communicated to the Director-General
of the International Labour Office for registration.
Article 24
1. This Convention
shall be binding only upon those Members of the International Labour
Organisation whose ratifications have been registered with the
Director-General.
2. It shall come
into force twelve months after the date on which the ratifications of two
Members have been registered with the Director-General.
3. Thereafter, this
Convention shall come into force for any Member twelve months after the date on
which its ratification has been registered.
Article 25
1. A Member which
has ratified this Convention may denounce it after the expiration of ten years
from the date on which the Convention first comes into force, by an act
communicated to the Director-General of the International Labour Office for
registration. Such denunciation shall not take effect until one year after the
date on which it is registered.
2. Each Member
which has ratified this Convention and which does not, within the year
following the expiration of the period of ten years mentioned in the preceding
paragraph, exercise the right of denunciation provided for in this Article,
will be bound for another period of ten years and, thereafter, may denounce
this Convention at the expiration of each period of ten years under the terms
provided for in this Article.
Article 26
1. The
Director-General of the International Labour Office shall notify all Members of
the International Labour Organisation of the registration of all ratifications
and denunciations communicated to him by the Members of the Organisation.
2. When notifying
the Members of the Organisation of the registration of the second ratification
communicated to him, the Director-General shall draw the attention of the
Members of the Organisation to the date upon which the Convention will come
into force.
Article 27
The
Director-General of the International Labour Office shall communicate to the
Secretary-General of the United Nations for registration in accordance with
Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations full particulars of all
ratifications and acts of denunciation registered by him in accordance with the
provisions of the preceding Articles.
Article 28
At such times as it
may consider necessary the Governing Body of the International Labour Office
shall present to the General Conference a report on the working of this
Convention and shall examine the desirability of placing on the agenda of the
Conference the question of its revision in whole or in part.
Article 29
1. Should the
Conference adopt a new Convention revising this Convention in whole or in part,
then, unless the new Convention otherwise provides:
a) the ratification
by a Member of the new revising Convention shall ipso jure involve the
immediate denunciation of this Convention, notwithstanding the provisions of
Article 25 above, if and when the new revising Convention shall have come into
force;
b) as from the date
when the new revising Convention comes into force this Convention shall cease
to be open to ratification by the Members.
2. This Convention
shall in any case remain in force in its actual form and content for those
Members which have ratified it but have not ratified the revising Convention.
Article 30
The English and
French versions of the text of this Convention are equally authoritative.