STRATEGIC LEGAL ACTS OF UKRAINE IN THE FIELD OF OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH: WAYS AND DIRECTIONS OF REFORMS
Authors: Pylypenko Pylyp , Kozak Zoriana 
Published: July 2023

The article examines the compliance of Ukraine's strategic legal acts on occupational safety and health (concepts, programs, action plans, etc.) with the EU strategic framework on health and safety at work (2021–2027), identifying and outlining potential ways and directions for further revision and improvement of Ukraine's national acts. The processes of Ukraine's accession to the EU and post-war recovery, rebuild and reconstruction will determine both general reforms of public policy and development of national legislation, as well as the transformation of sectoral policies and legislation, in particular on the occupational safety and health (OSH). The authors substantiate the impact of these processes on Ukraine's OSH strategic legal acts. The article examines the practice of development OSH strategic legal acts of Ukraine. The authors analyse the Concept for Reforming the Occupational Safety and Health Management System in Ukraine (OSH Concept (2018)) and outline its positive aspects in promoting European integration reforms in the field of occupational safety and health at work. The authors outline the shortcomings of the OSH Concept (2018) that characterize it as a strategic legal act. These include: the lack of rules and procedures that establish monitoring, evaluation, and reporting on the implementation of the OSH Concept (2018), as well as the need to update the OSH Concept. The OSH Concept (2018) needs to be updated in the view of Ukraine's future membership in the EU. The article examines the EU strategic framework on health and safety at work 2021–2027 and analyses the potential impact of the strategy on the development and adoption of Ukraine's strategic legal acts. The authors substantiate the need of revising the national concept, suggests ways and directions for its further revision and improvement of national acts. The goal of OSH Concept (2018) – creating a new national system for preventing occupational risks to ensure the effective realization of employees' right to safe and healthy working conditions, which should be based on a risk-based approach, – remains relevant. However, the system has not been implemented, nor have the necessary legislative acts been adopted. The article states the need to revise the OSH Concept (2018) in view of the reforms related to the post-war recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine. The problems of workers' safety and health, both during the war and in the process of Ukraine's recovery and development after the war, are not reflected in the draft Recovery Plan of Ukraine, particular in the materials of the Working group "Economic Recovery and Development" that was supposed to address the reforms in the employment and labour fields. In fact, the employment and labour security components were ignored and reduced to the European integration direction of reforms. It is proposed that the updated/revised OHS Concept should include provisions aimed at preventing and eliminating risks that are global in nature and caused by environmental and digital changes in the economy, demographic changes, and further growth in the use of non-standard forms of employment, as well as risks to employee safety and health caused by the war and its consequences.