EN Official Journal of the European Union C 93/42

Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee on the Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Council Directive 89/391/EEC, its individual Directives and Council Directives 83/477/EEC, 91/383/EEC, 92/29/EEC and 94/33/EC with a view to simplifying and rationalising the reports on practical implementation

COM(2006) 390 final — 2006/0127 (COD)

(2007/C 93/10)

On 20 September 2006 the European Commission decided to consult the European Economic and Social Committee, under Article 262 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the abovementioned proposal.

The Section for Employment, Social Affairs and Citizenship, which was responsible for preparing the Committee's work on the subject, adopted its opinion on 19 December 2006. The rapporteur was Mr Janson.

At its 432nd plenary session, held on 17-18 January 2007 (meeting of 17 January) the European Economic and Social Committee adopted the following opinion by 150 votes to 1 with 6 abstentions.

1. Conclusions and recommendations

1.1 Health and safety at work is an area of EU competence which is important from the point of view of sustainable competition in the internal market and a social Europe. Companies must not be able to compete with each other at the expense of workers' health and safety.

1.2 Most of the directives on health and safety at work require Member States to draw up reports on the practical implementation of the directives. The current provisions lay down different intervals for the submission of national practical implementation reports to the Commission (four or five years). The purpose of the Commission's proposal is to remove these disparities and to rationalise the existing framework by providing for a single report every five years on the practical implementation of all of the directives.

1.3 The EESC welcomes the Commission proposal. Reporting has taken up a large amount of the national authorities' time, and the proposal will bring significant savings in time and cost.

1.4 Harmonising the frequency of reporting and bringing together reporting obligations in a single report will enable the national authorities in Member States to obtain a better overall view of the situation and make it easier to report on the links between the various health risks which the directives seek to prevent. Regular reporting on the practical implementation of the provisions of the directives is an important instrument for assessing the impact of the various measures on workers' health and safety in the European Union. However, the EESC considers that the Commission should propose the introduction of a requirement for Member States to consult with the social partners on all sections of the report and to include their comments in the report before sending it to the Commission.

1.5 The proposed directive will also help to increase transparency for stakeholders and the public at large, thus bringing Europe closer to the people and strengthening democracy.

2. Background

2.1 Gist of the Commission Communication

2.1.1 The proposal aims to simplify and rationalise the provisions of the Community directives concerning protection of the health and safety of workers at work, which require Member States and the Commission to draw up reports on their practical implementation.

2.1.2 Many of the directives on health and safety at work require Member States to draw up reports on the practical implementation of the directives. The current provisions lay down different intervals for the submission of national practical implementation reports to the Commission (four or five years). The purpose of the Commission's proposal is to remove these disparities and to rationalise the existing framework by providing for a single report every five years on the practical implementation of all of the directives, which would include a general section with general principles and common aspects applicable to all the directives, complemented by specific chapters dealing with the aspects particular to each directive The first report will cover the period 2007 to 2012.

2.1.3 At present, the drawing up by Member States of practical implementation reports — on which the Commission's report is based — is provided for by Council Directive 89/391/EEC of 12 June 1989 on the introduction of measures to improve the health and safety of workers at work (1) and by the individual directives (2) within the meaning of Article 16(1) of that directive. Three other directives also provide for reports to be drawn up (3).

2.1.4 Under the Commission proposal, three other directives in the field in question that do not require practical implementation reports would now be included in the reporting procedure. These are: Council Directive 83/477/EEC of 19 September 1983 on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work (4); Directive 2000/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work (seventh individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16(1) of Directive 89/391/EEC) (5); and Directive 2004/37/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work (sixth individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16(1) of Council Directive 89/391/EEC) (6).

2.2 General comments

2.2.1 Health and safety at work is an area of EU competence which is important for sustainable competition in the internal market and for a social Europe. Companies must not be able to compete with each other at the expense of workers' health and safety.

2.2.2 The EESC welcomes the Commission proposal, which will bring significant savings in terms of time and cost. Reporting has taken up a large amount of the national authorities' time. At the moment, the different time intervals imposed by the various directives mean that evaluation exercises are carried out virtually continuously, resulting in disproportionately high administrative costs.

2.2.3 Harmonising the frequency of reporting and bringing together reporting obligations in a single report will enable the national authorities in Member States to obtain a better overall view of the situation and make it easier to report on the links between the various health risks which the directives seek to prevent. Problems relating to health and safety at work are often intertwined and a single report could help to give a better picture of the overall effects of the directives. Regular reporting on the practical implementation of the provisions of the directives is an important instrument for assessing the impact of the various measures on workers' health and safety in the European Union.

2.2.4 However, the EESC considers that the Commission should propose the introduction of a requirement for Member States to consult with the social partners on all sections of the report and to include their comments in the report before sending it to the Commission.

2.2.5 The proposed directive will also help to increase transparency for stakeholders and the public at large, thus bringing Europe closer to the people and strengthening democracy.

Brussels, 17 January 2007. The President of the European Economic and Social Committee Dimitris DIMITRIADIS

(1) OJ L 183, 29.6.1989, p. 1.

(2) Council Directive 89/654/EEC of 30 November 1989 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for the workplace (OJ L 393, 30.12.1989, p. 1), Council Directive 89/655/EEC of 30 November 1989 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for the use of work equipment by workers at work (OJ L 393, 30.12.1989, p. 13), Council Directive 89/656/EEC of 30 November 1989 concerning the minimum health and safety requirements for the use by workers of personal protective equipment at the workplace (OJ L 393, 30.12.1989, p. 18), Council Directive 90/269/EEC of 29 May 1990 concerning the minimum health and safety requirements for the manual handling of loads where there is a risk particularly of back injury to workers (OJ L 156, 21.6.1990, p. 9), Council Directive 90/270/EEC of 29 May 1990 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for work with display screen equipment (OJ L 156, 21.6.1990, p. 14), Council Directive 92/57/EEC of 24 June 1992 concerning the implementation of minimum safety and health requirements at temporary or mobile construction sites (OJ L 245, 26.8.1992, p. 6), Council Directive 92/58/EEC of 24 June 1992 concerning the minimum requirements for the provision of safety and/or health signs at work (OJ L 245, 26.8.1992, p. 23), Council Directive 92/85/EEC of 19 October 1992 concerning the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding (OJ L 348, 28.11.1992, p. 1), Council Directive 92/91/EEC of 3 November 1992 concerning the minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers in the mineral-extracting industries through drilling (OJ L 348, 28.11.1992, p. 9), Council Directive 92/104/EEC of 3 December 1992 concerning the minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers in surface and underground mineral-extracting industries (OJ L 404, 31.12.1992, p. 10), Council Directive 93/103/EC of 23 November 1993 concerning the minimum safety and health requirements for work on board fishing vessels (OJ L 307, 13.12.1993, p. 1), Council Directive 98/24/EC of 7 April 1998 concerning the protection of the health and safety of workers from the risks related to chemical agents at work (OJ L 131, 5.5.1998, p. 11), Directive 99/92/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning minimum requirements for improving the safety and health protection of workers potentially at risk from explosive atmospheres (OJ L 23 of 28.1.2000 p. 57), Directive 2002/44/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 June 2002 concerning the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (vibration) (OJ L 177, 6.7.2002, p. 13), Directive 2003/10/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 February 2003 concerning the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (noise) (OJ L 177, 6.7.2002, p. 13), Directive 2004/40/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 concerning the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (electromagnetic fields) (OJ L 159, 30.4.2004, p. 1), Directive 2006/25/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 5 April 2006 on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to risks arising from physical agents (artificial optical radiation) (OJ L 42, 15.2.2003, p. 38). Three directives in the field in question do not require practical implementation reports, namely: Council Directive 83/477/EEC of 19 September 1983 on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work, Directive 2000/54/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on the protection of workers from risks related to exposure to biological agents at work (seventh individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16(1) of Directive 89/391/EEC) and Directive 2004/37/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work (sixth individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16(1) of Council Directive 89/391/EEC).

(3) Council Directives 91/383/EEC of 25 June 1991, supplementing the measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of workers with a fixed duration employment relationship or a temporary employment relationship (OJ L 206, 29.7.1991, p. 19), 92/29/EEC of 31 March 1992 on the minimum safety and health requirements for improved medical treatment on board vessels (OJ L 113, 30.4.1992, p. 19), and 94/33/EC of 22 June 1994 on the protection of young people at work (OJ L 216, 20.8.1994, p. 12).

(4) OJ L 263, 24.9.1983, p. 25.

(5) OJ L 262, 17.10.2000, p. 21.

(6) OJ L 229, 29.6.2004, p. 23.