Mid-term report on the Community programme concerning safety, hygiene and health at work (1996-2000)
Date: 1998-09-03
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU programme, action programme, health policy, occupational health, occupational safety

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 03.09.1998 
COM(1998) 511  final 

MID-TERM REPORT 

ON THE COMMUNITY PROGRAMME 

CONCERNING SAFETY, HYGIENE AND 

HEALTH AT WORK 

(1996-2000) 

(presented by the Commission) 

MID-TERM REPORT ON THE COMMUNITY PROGRAMME 
CONCERNING SAFETY, HYGIENE AND HEALTH AT WORK 
(1996-2000) 

The Commission  undertook  to  prepare  a report  on the  state of the  activities  carried  out 
under the Community Programme on Health and Safety at Work  1996-2000. ' 

The programme was presented  following the putting into place of a comprehensive body 
of  Community  legislation  adopted  under  Article  118A. It  was  designed  to  support  the 
implementation  and  application  of  the  existing  legislation,  and  also  to  put  increased 
emphasis on non-legislative measures. 

THE PERIOD 1996-1998 

The  following  actions which were scheduled  for the period  1996-1998 deserve particular 
attention. 

•  Setting up of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work in Bilbao 

The  Agency  is  now  in  place  and  operational. 
Its  mission  is  to  provide  relevant 
information  on work conditions, health, and safety at the workplace. In this context it will 
work  closely  with  the  European  Foundation  for  Living  and  Working  Conditions  in 
Dublin  which  has  established  a complementary  work programme  for  1998-2000  in  this 
area.  The  Bilbao  Agency  will  be  a  source  of  scientific,  technical  and  economic 
information to all concerned. 

•  The SAFE Programme 

A proposal  for  a Council  decision  adopting  a programme of non-legislative  measures to 
improve health and safety at work (SAFE) was transmitted  in  1995 by the Commission to 
the Council2. The  SAFE  proposal  envisages  in  particular  the  financing  of guidance  and 
information  to  help  correctly  apply  legislation  in  force,  paying  particular  attention  to 
improving  safety  and  health  in  small  and  medium  sized  enterprises.  The  proposal  was 
modified  in  1997 after  consultation  of the European  Parliament3,  and was discussed  on 
several occasions by the Council Working Party on Social Questions, without  agreement 
being reached. 

A  number  of  preparatory  and  pilot  projects  were  co-financed  with  a  view  to  help 
accommodating particular needs of small and medmm sized enterprises, to promote best 

1  COM(95)282 final - OJ C 262 of 07.10.1995, p. 18 

2  COM(95)282 final -  OJ C 262 of 07.10.1995, p. 18 

3  COM(96)652 final -  OJ C 92 of 21.03.1997, p. 3 

practice as a standard for the development of a work environment that is safe, productive 
and  competitive,  and to  advance  in correct  and effective  application  of  EU  health and 
safely legislation. 

The Commission  is concerned that this Programme remains unadopted. It was presented 
with  considerable  support  from  social  partners,  Governments  and  the  European 
Parliament,  as  a means  of  furthering  the  culture  of  health  and  safety  as  an  essential 
component of good management and a key component of the Community's endeavours to 
improve and enhance application of the legislation in place. 

The Commission will discuss with the Parliament and the Council this and other pending 
proposals in the field of health and safety in order to encourage progress. 

In this context, it may be useful  to reflect on whether the Bilbao Agency, in particular, or 
the  Dublin  Foundation  could  take over some of  the essential  components  of the  SAFE 
Programme.  This  could  only  be  envisaged  provided  sufficient  resources  were  made 
available.  For this to be put into practice, the Budgetary Authority  would  have to make 
adjustments to the relevant budgetary provisions. 

•  Transposition and updating of existing legislative measures 

Transposition 

In  1996  the  rate  of  transposition  by  Member  States  of  the  Directives  adopted  under 
Article 118A was (about) 74%. This has now reached 95%. 

During the reference period some 30 reasoned opinions, six decisions to seize the Court 
of Justice and one ruling of the Court against one Member State has led to a significant 
improvement in the level of transposition. There are now only nine cases outstanding. 

Updating 

The Chemical  Agents Directive was adopted on 7 April  1998.4 This text represents the 
outcome  of  long  discussions  at the  European  Parliament  and at the  Council  and  is an 
example  of  simplified  and  rationalised  legislation,  given  that  it  consolidates  several 
Directives in this area. 

Similarly,  the  adoption  by  Council  of  an  amendment  to  Directive  89/655/EEC 
concerning the minimum safety  and health requirements for the use of work equipment 
by  workers  at  work5  extends  the  minimum  safety  and health  requirements  to  mobile 
equipment  and  equipment  for  lifting  loads.  The  provisions  for  scaffolding  were  not 
adopted by Council on this occasion. The Commission is considering a separate proposal 
to deal with the needs in this respect. 

4  Council Directive 98/24/EC of 07.04.1998 -  OJ L 131 of 05.05.1998, p. 11 

5  Council Directive 95/63/EC of 05.12.1995 -  OJ L 335 of 30.12.1995, p. 28 

3 

The  Commission  has proposed  updating  the health  and  safety  Directives  in  the  light  of 
advances in scientific  and technological progress and other relevant  factors. In particular 
in  the  field  of  the  establishment  of  Indicative  Limit  Values  (ILVs)  the  Commission 
adopted  Directive 96/94/EC establishing a second list of indicative limit values6. 

Council  Directive  90/679/EEC  on  the  protection  of  workers  from  risks  related  to 
exposure  to biological  agents at work  was adapted  to technical  progress  by  Commission 
Directives  97/59/EC7  and  97/65/EC8. The  Commission  took  into  account  new  scientific 
evidence  concerning  the  transmissibility  of  the  BSE  agent  to  humans  as  soon  as  it 
became available. Directive 97/65/EC in particular reinforces  substantially the protection 
of workers from risks related to the exposure to BSE and TSE agents at work. 

Council  Directive  97/42/EC,  amending  for  the  first  time  Directive  90/394/EEC  on  the 
protection  of  workers  from  the  risks  related  to  exposure  to  carcinogens  at  work,  was 
presented  by  the  Commission  in  September  1995,  and  was  adopted  by  the  Council  in 
June  1997.  This  Directive  represents  an  important  step  forward  because  it  extends  the 
scope  of  the  Directive  by  covering  the  handling  of  substances  and  preparations 
(responsible  for  increased  risks  of  cancer)  which  were  not  previously  included.  In 
addition the directive contains an occupational  limit value for a known carcinogen. 

THE PERIOD  1998-2000 

The  second  period  of  the  Community  programme  will  take  place  in  a  different 
environment,  following  the  political  agreements  in  the  Amsterdam  and  Luxembourg 
Summits, and the start of negotiations on enlargement. 

The  general  context  is  that  the  structure  of  the  working  population  and  employment 
patterns are changing : an ageing workforce; a steady increase in the proportion of female 
workers;  an  increase  in  casual  and  part-time  work  and,  in  economic  sectors  other  than 
agriculture, self-employment,  with a continuing increase in jobs in the service sector. The 
Commission's  aim  continues  to  be  to  involve  all  players  in  achieving  a  modernised, 
effective  and  efficient  health  and safety  for  Europe, which reduces the  accident  and ill-
health record and is positive for employability and business. 

The  Commission  has  re-examined  its priorities  from  now  until  the  year  2000  in  safety 
and health at work. 

6  O JL 338 of 28.12.1996, p. 86 

7  O JL 282 of 15.10.1997, p.33 

8  O JL 335 of 6.12.1997, p.17 

PRIORITIES  1998-2000 

/  Making legislation more  effective 

/ 

Preparing for enlargement 

-/  Strengthen the link with employability 

/  Working conditions in a time of change: focus 

on new risks 

MAKING EUROPEAN LEGISLATION MORE EFFECTIVE 

A  comprehensive  up-to-date  body  of  Community  legislation  exists  in  the  area  of 
occupational  health  and  safety.  Member  States  have  made  considerable  efforts  to 
transpose  the  legislation  so that  95% is now transposed.  The  Commission  is  at  present 
examining whether National legislation is in conformity with the EU standards. 

Correct  transposition  needs  to  be  matched  by  proper  implementation  and  practical 
application.  The  Commission,  based  on  reports  which  Member  States  are  required  to 
submit, and its own evaluation, will assess the implementation  of national legislation, its 
degree  of  compliance  at  workplace  level  as  well  as the  enforcement  effort  deployed  in 
application.  In  order  to  ensure  transparency,  the  Commission  intends  to  send  the 
evaluation  reports to the European  Parliament,  ECOSOC, the Committee of Regions and 
the Council of Ministers. 

The Commission  will promote the greater involvement  of the 9000 labour  inspectors  in 
the  15 Member States in encouraging the effective  enforcement  of Community  law. The 
Committee  of  Senior  Labour  Inspectors  (SLIC) gives  opinions  on  problems  relating  to 
the enforcement  by the Member  States of Community  law on health and  safety  at work. 
The Commission is working closely with the SLIC to develop the necessary initiatives in 
this  field,  and  to  ensure  that  SLIC  can  actively  co-operate  in  evaluating  the 
implementation  of Community  legislation. 

It  is  also  essential  that  the  views  of  the  social  partners  are properly  integrated  into  the 
process of evaluation, given that they have a primary responsibility  for applying the rules 
on the ground. This will involve the Advisory Committee for Health, Hygiene and  Safety 
at  Work  and  the  Health  and  Safety  Commission  for  the  Mines  and  Other  Extractive 
Industries. 

The Commission will examine how to develop in co-operation with national authorities a 
set  of  Community  indicators  which  could  provide  information  on  the  most  effective 
policies. The European statistics on accidents at work (ESAW) and European 
occupational  diseases  statistics  (EODS),  a  labour  force  survey  planed  for  spring  1999, 
and  studies  of  the  European  Commission  on  the  socio-economic  costs  of  occupational 
accidents  and  diseases  will  form  elements  for  the  setting  up  of  these  indicators.This 

nouid  help  in  assessing  whether  the  legislation  is  really  effective  in  creating  and 
•:maintaining  the  right  safety  and  health  conditions,  or  if  it  needs  improvement. 
Modifications  to existing legislation may also be required in view of the rapidly changing 
work  situation  and  of  the  appearance  of  new  risks.  The  Commission  will  continue  its 
policy  of  reviewing  the  existing  Directives  with  a view  to  ensuring  modernisation  and 
rationalisation wherever required. 

The Commission will support the initiatives of the Member States directed to the creation 
of the necessary  safety  culture  in the individuals, starting  from  the earliest  age possible. 
Community  legislation  is  encouraging  employers  and  workers  to  participate  in  this 
endeavour  and  the  roles  of  the  Bilbao  Agency  and  the  Dublin  Foundation  in  providing 
information  are key components  of this policy.  In this context,  the Commission  will  re 
examine the scope for improving the exchange of information  with the Member States on 
proposed  national  legislation on safety, hygiene and health at work. Early consultation  as 
foreseen  by Commission  Decision 88/383/EEC will contribute to achieving this aim. 

There  is  in  general  a  lack  of  understanding  by  small  and  medium-sized  enterprises 
(SMEs)  of  the  importance  of  health  and  safety  measures  and  their  positive  economic 
benefits,  as  they  often  perceive  it  merely  as  a  cost.  The  Commission  has  initiated  a 
number  of  actions  in  order  to  improve  the  awareness  of  SMEs  on  health  and  safety  at 
work  and  to  develop  ways  of  encouraging  good  performance  and  the  exchange  of 
information.  The response  to  the preparatory  projects  for  SAFE has  shown  that  SMEs 
can be influenced to implement good conditions of safety and health. 

A recent  study of European  SMEs has shown that  authoritative  guidance  is helpful  and 
effective  in implementation  of legal provisions. SMEs in particular need  information  on 
national  legislation  and  also  guidance  on  best  practices,  on  methods  of  improving 
standards  in  their  workplace  and  on  the  need  to  integrate  health  and  safety  in 
management.  Up-to-date  electronic  information  on  both  European  and  national  health 
and safety  provisions, for access by enterprises and their intermediaries, is important and 
is  now  being  developed.  In  addition  the  Commission  is developing  electronic  access to 
legislation,  and  the guidance  documents  which  are  associated  with  the  legislation.  As a 
consequence  employers  will  soon  be  able  to  provide  specific  and  targeted  high  quality 
information  to their workers. 

The  Commission,  in  co-operation  with  Member  States,  intends  to  carry  out  specific-
studies on the impact of Community  legislation  at the level of the enterprise, in order to 
evaluate what effect  it has had on improving safety and health. 

In  addition,  various  Community  policies  including  transport  and  environment  also 
contribute  to  improvements  in  safety  and  health  at  the  workplace.  The  Commission 
intends to review the impact of these other policies on health and safety. 

PREPARING  FOR  ENLARGEMENT 

The Commission  has drawn  up  its  future  strategy  on enlargement  in  its  Communication 
'Agenda 2000"'.  One of the key principles  is that the applicant countries will take on the 
rights  and  obligations  of  membership  on  the  basis  of  the  acquis and  that  they  will  be 
expected  to  apply,  implement  and  enforce  the acquis upon  accession.  The  Commission 
has  identified  health  and  safety  at work  as one of the key  elements  of the acquis in  the 
social  area  and  stressed  that  it  will  require  considerable  efforts  from  the  candidate 
countries to meet the level of health and safety protection attained within the Union. 

The  Commission,  by  means  of  the  Accession  Partnerships  will  assess  the  degree  of 
compliance  of  the  applicant  countries  with  the  acquis  and  at  the  same  time  will  give 
support  through,  inter  alia,  PHARE  and  TAIEX,  to  these  countries'  efforts  in  the 
framework  of a reinforced pre-accession strategy. This assessment will address: 

=>  What  the  on-the-ground  situation  is  regarding  health  and  safety  at  work  in  the 

applicant countries, including the numbers of accidents and occupational diseases; 

->  how the situation  is evolving in these countries (i.e. is it getting better or worse?) 

=>  what  are the biggest  challenges to improved  standards  in these countries  (e.g. lack 
of  information,  lack  of  resources,  obsolete  and  dangerous  plant  and  equipment, 
unsafe inputs, environmental  factors, etc.?) 

=> 

how does the legislation compare with that in the EU, and what are the procedures 
for  enforcement? 

=>  what  are  the  most  effective  measures  that  can  be  promoted  to  raise  health  and 

safety standards in the applicant countries? 

The results of this assessment will identify  what help is required to carry out the changes, 
for  instance, through  support  for the training of specialists  in areas such as  occupational 
health  and  hygiene,  law  and  technical  inspections.  This  will  require  a  substantial 
contribution  to  training,  information  and  technical  knowledge  which  could  largely  be 
provided  through  the  Bilbao  Agency,  and  the  Dublin  Foundation,  and  expertise  drawn 
from  the  Member  States  and  other  authoritative  sources.  Similarly,  the  Senior  Labour 
Inspectors'  Committee  (SLIC)  will  provide  a  valuable  forum  not  only  for  exchange  of 
technical information  but also for the dialogue between the applicant countries, which are 
informally represented on the Committee. 

COM (97) 2000 final 

STRENGTHEN  THE  LINK  WITH  EMPLOYABILITY 

A good and safe working environment  is important  for the individual  in order to maintain 
health  and  working capacity.  At the same time, a good  and  safe  working environment  is 
an  important  competitive  factor  for  the  enterprises.  The  quality  of  work  and  its 
organisation  increasingly  influences  the  availability  of  skilled  labour,  the  motivation  of 
personnel and the development of human resources in general. 

Increasing  employment  on  a  lasting  basis  and  promoting  employability  are  two  of  the 
main  concerns  of  the  European  employment  strategy  agreed  in  the  Amsterdam  and 
Luxembourg  Summits.  Measures  to  improve  health  and  safety  at  work  provide  an 
important  contribution  to employability  in the work force. These policies can contribute 
in two ways to the maintenance and improvement of employability: 

=>  Prevention  of  accidents  and  diseases:  every  year  a  significant  number  of  the 
workers  involved  in the  5 million  accidents at work  and  occupational  diseases  are 
forced  out  of  work  either  temporarily  or  permanently.  Health  and  safety  policy 
aims  to  prevent  work  accidents  and  occupational  disease  and  palliate  their  effects 
on  health.  In  this  way,  health  and  safety  measures  can  contribute  to  improving 
productivity and help to improve the economic performance of the enterprises. 

=>  Employment  of  people  with  disabilities:  according  to  the  European  Household 
Panel  Survey  conducted  by  Eurostat  in  1994  about  17%  of  the  working  age 
population  regarded  themselves  as being  severely  or  to  some  extent  hampered  in 
their  daily  activities  by  a  chronic  physical  or  mental  health  problem,  illness  or 
disability.  Eurostat  estimates  based  on  a  census  carried  out  in  1991/1992  in  10 
Member  States  indicate  that  in  most  Member  States  around  10-12%  of  the 
population is disabled. Where workers are disabled either through accidents at work 
or occupational disease or for other reasons, there should not be an assumption that 
those  people  should  be  permanently  excluded  from  the  labour  market.  Disabled 
workers  need  to  be  facilitated  to find jobs,  and  the  working  environment  should 
lake into account their specific needs. 

Progress  in the employment  of disabled  people  requires  fundamental  changes  in  actions 
to  remove  long-standing  labour  market  disadvantages.  This  includes  access  to  quality 
training  and  educational  programmes,  removing  discriminatory  practices  in  the  labour 
market,  and  adaptation  of workplaces.  It  is here  that  health  and  safety  legislation  has a 
role to play. 

For  these  reasons  it  is  essential  to  improve  the  infrastructure  to  facilitate  access  to 
workplaces. It is important  to make the necessary  adjustment  of workplaces  to fit better 
the  individual  needs  and  capacities  of people  with  disability  and  such  improved  health 
and safety at work will contribute to improving thf  employability of the disabled. 

The Commission intends to initiate a debate to ensure thaï these issues can be given more 
attention in the preparation of the future employment guidelines. 

WORKING  CONDITIONS  IN A TIME  OF CHANGE;  FOCUS ON NEW  RISKS 

8 

The labour market is changing. One important trend is the transformation  of the economy 
into a service  economy  which  raises new  challenges  for  occupational  health  and  safety. 
Occupational  accidents  are  less  frequent  in  this  sector  than  in  the  traditional  high  risk 
areas  such  as  agriculture,  construction  and  manufacturing.  45  per  cent  of  accidents  at 
work  occur  in  the  service  sector,  where  65  per  cent  of  employed  persons  are  working. 
However, other health-related  problems, such as stress, now appear more  frequently. 

Another aspect to take into consideration is the steady increase of women in employment. 
Women's employment rate has increased  from  44 per cent in  1975 to over 50 per cent in 
1996  and  this  increase  is  expected  to  continue.  This  implies  some  specific  health  and 
safety  requirements. 

A third trend is the ageing of the workforce. The percentage of workers aged 40 and over 
is projected  to increase from  around 45 per cent in  1996 to just over 50 per cent in 2005 
and to over 54 per cent in 2020. This underlines the need for workers to stay longer in the 
labour market and may also imply specific health and safety requirements. 

A fourth  factor  affecting  the conditions  for health  and safety  is the transformation  of the 
economy  into a service  economy  and  the development  of  new  forms  of  organisation  of 
work.  This  has  led  to  a change  in  working  patterns  with  an  increase  in  part-time  work, 
from  less than  11 percent  in  1985 to more than  16 per cent  in  1996, an increase of  12-13 
million, and  in fixed term contracts, from  9 per cent to almost  12 per cent. The widescalc 
implementation  of  new  technologies  and  of  new  forms  of  organisation  of  work  might 
reduce old risks but may also lead to new problems. 

=>  The Commission  will  put  more emphasis on the  implication  of these  changes  and 
the anticipation of further  developments to ensure that these issues are addressed in 
future  health  and  safety  policies.  The  changing  patterns  of  work  may  also  have 
significant  potential  consequences  for  the  implementation  of  occupational  health 
and  safety  policies.  For  instance  training  may  be  affected,  the  supervision  chain 
may not be adequate, and there may be a lack of continuity for personnel that leads 
to a loss of corporate knowledge of health and safety problems and how to address 
them. 

The Commission  will  initiate a debate on changing working conditions  in order to 
increase  the awareness  of the consequences  for  health  and  safety  and  to  stimulate 
the development of policies to improve working conditions. 

The  monitoring  of  the  effects  of  such  changes  is  now  supported  by  the  first  data 
based  on an harmonised  methodology  at European  level  on occupational  accidents 
and diseases. European  statistics on accidents at work (ESAW) have been collected 
by  the  Statistical  Office  of  the  European  Communities  (Eurostat)  from  the 
reference  year  1993. The  1995  European  occupational  diseases  statistics  (EODS) 
pilot  data on  31  items of  the  European  schedule  of occupational  diseases  are now 
available in Eurostat and their comparability is being evaluated. These data are now 
collected  on  an  annual  basis  by  Eurostat  to  allow  the  Commission  and  Member 
States to obtain a meaningful  picture of how the Member  States are performing  in 
comparative terms and to identify best practice at Community level, and those areas 
where  further  actions  are  required.  The  Commission  (Eurostat)  and  the  relevant 
departments in the Member States will continue to develop a system of harmonised 
data  for  accidents  and  occupational  diseases.  The  Commission  will  also  look  at 
statistics available from other sources. 

The available data will be collated in a report on "The State of health and safety  in 
the EU" to be published by the Commission.  This will draw on a detailed technical 
report  which  the  Bilbao  Agency  is  preparing  as  well  as  scientific  and  technical 
information from the Dublin Foundation, and other Agencies. 

Working  conditions within  the European Union  are also affected  by  technological 
innovations, economic changes and perception of health and safety in the rest of the 
world. Similar changes are occurring elsewhere in the world, and bilateral  contacts 
will  also  be  pursued.  The joint  EU/US  Action  Plan  for  example  identifies  health 
and safety  as a priority area in the context of the creation of the New  Transatlantic 
Marketplace. The Commission  will also pursue further  initiatives with Japan.  This 
change  in  working  conditions  is  also  being  reflected  by  the  work  of  the 
international  organisations.  The  Commission  will  continue  to  cooperate  with 
international organisations (e.g. UN, WHO, ILO), which promote health and  safety 
at work. 

This  will  also  be  underpinned  by  the  relevant  activities  on  health  and  safety 
research  foreseen  in  the  proposal  for  a  Council  decision  adopting  a  specific 
programme  on  "Quality  of  Life  and  Management  of  Living  Resources"  (1998  -
2002)  in  the  context  of  the  Fifth  Framework  Programme  of  the  EC  for  research, 
technological development and demonstration activities. 

10 

ISSN 0254-1475 

COM(98) 511 final 

DOCUMENTS 

EN 

04  05  16  17 

Catalogue  number  :  CB-CO-98-519-EN-C 

ISBN  92-78-38903-X 

Office  for Official  Publications of the European  Communities 

L-2985 Luxembourg 

ii