Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the 'Proposal for a Council Directive on the Protection of workers from the risks related to exposure of carcinogens at work (Sixth individual Directive within the meaning of Article 16 (1) of Directive 89/391/EEC)'
Date: 1999-10-20
Institutions: European Economic and Social Committee
Subjects: carcinogenic substance, health risk, occupational health, occupational safety, safety standard

C 368/18

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

20.12.1999

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a Council Directive on the
Protection of workers from the risks related to exposure of carcinogens at work (Sixth individual
Directive within the meaning of Article 16 (1) of Directive 89/391/EEC)’

(1999/C 368/07)

On 17 May 1999 the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 198
of the Treaty establishing the European Community, on the above-mentioned 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 30 September 1999. The rapporteur was Mr
Thomas Etty.

At its 367th plenary session (meeting of 20 October 1999), the Economic and Social Committee adopted
the following opinion by 97 votes in favour and one vote against, with two abstentions.

1.
The Committee agrees in general terms with the Com-
mission that it is important to simplify and clarify Community
law, without affecting the level of protection. This is certainly
desirable in the area of occupational safety and health legis-
lation where the architecture of existing instruments has
become, in some cases, very complicated.

2.
It notes that the purpose of the consolidation operation
will not involve changes of substance to the present legislation.

that

The Committee also notes

3.
the Commission’s
decision of 1 April 1987 states that all legislation measures
should be consolidated after no more than ten amendments
(as a minimum requirement). The Carcinogens Directive of
1990 (1) had been amended just once when the Commission
presented its proposal of 8 April 1999. Meanwhile, the Council
Directive has been amended for a second time on 29 April
1999.

The Committee thinks that codification efforts should start
where the need for creating transparency is most urgent. The
Commission should try to avoid a situation where a proposal
for codification will almost immediately be followed by a new
proposal for an amendment.

In this case, the reason for the early Commission proposal was
because of questions relating to the field of application:
initially, the Directive limited protection of workers to sub-
stances classified at Community level; after the first amend-
ment, the field of application was widened to substances
recognized as carcinogenic by other authoritative bodies.

The Committee understands that the preparations for including
a second amendment in the codification process are well
advanced. It therefore expects the new proposal to be adopted
shortly.

(1) Directive 90/394/EEC, OJ L 196, 26.7.1990.

4.

The Committee fully agrees with the present proposal.

As this is the first proposal of this sort in the policy area
5.
it
concerned, brought to the attention of the Committee,
wishes to express itself on the more general aspects of the
codification process as regards occupational safety and health
legislation:

— taking into account point 2 above, if there are differences
of nuance of protection among instruments selected for
codification, the provisions most favourable to safety and
health at work must apply;

— if such instruments contain exemptions, e.g. excluded
sectors,
the codification should trigger immediately a
discussion in the relevant EU services and bodies whether
and which exemptions are still justified, and conclusions
should be drawn and implemented expediently;

— codification is not only important

in order to make
legislation clearer and more accessible to the ordinary
citizen of the EU, but also with a view to the governments,
parliaments and socio-economic interest groups in the
candidate Member States of the EU, in particular those
in Central and Eastern Europe. In this connection, the
Committee once again pleads for stronger cooperation
with the relevant parties in these countries in the field of
occupational safety and health;

— the Committee realises that codification is not only a
matter of concern of DG V but to a large degree of the
legal services of the Commission. Nevertheless, it wishes
to reiterate its earlier proposals to the Commission to
ensure that all relevant resources of DG V will be kept at a
level enabling them to fulfill their tasks adequately.

20.12.1999

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 368/19

— If, as is hoped, the codification process makes Community
law clearer and more accessible, DG V could explore the

possibility of supplementary instruments and measures to
promote better implementation of existing legislation.

Brussels, 20 October 1999.

The President

of the Economic and Social Committee

Beatrice RANGONI MACHIAVELLI

Opinion of the Economic and Social Committee on the ‘Proposal for a Council Decision
establishing a Community action programme to promote the integration of refugees’

(1999/C 368/08)

On 5 July 1999, the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, under Article 262
of the Treaty on European Union, on the above-mentioned 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 30 September 1999. The rapporteur was
Mrs zu Eulenberg.

At its 367th plenary session of 20/21 October 1999 (meeting of 20 October) the Economic and Social
Committee adopted the following opinion by 107 votes to one with two abstentions.

1. General comments

Against the background of this generally favourable opinion,
the ESC would, however, make a few proposals for changes to
the current document, which are set out and explained below:

This opinion examines a Community action programme
promoting the integration of people who have been recognised
as refugees ‘or, depending on the Member State concerned,
granted some other form of protection enabling them to
remain, and are therefore suitable candidates for full assimi-
lation into the society of the Member States’ (page 3 of the
in
proposal). At the request of the European Parliament,
December 1998 the European Commission submitted a corre-
sponding proposal for a Council Decision.

The ESC is extremely glad that, at the request of the European
Parliament, the Commission has submitted the Proposal for a
Council Decision establishing a Community action programme
to promote the integration of refugees. The ESC endorses both
the explanatory memorandum and the body of the proposal
and sees in the action programme an important instrument
for underpinning and continuing the positive results of the
pilot actions, and for reacting in a coherent way to the
challenges facing the European Union and its Member States
in connection with the integration of refugees. Against this
background the ESC stresses the importance of modelling the
action programme closely on the pilot actions, e.g. in terms of
timing, and ensuring that it is implemented as rapidly as
possible. The ESC also considers the 18-month term of the
programme to be essential.

1.1. Funding policy background to the proposed action programme

1.1.1.
The integration of refugees who have found shelter
and protection in the EU Member States has become a matter
of increasing concern in recent years. At the request of the
European Parliament, in 1997 and 1998 a number of pilot
actions promoting the integration of refugees were funded
under budget heading B3-4113. The action programme under
review here, which was adopted by the Commission in
December 1998, reflects the performance of the pilot actions.

1.1.2.
On 13 January 1999 the Commission also submitted
a complementary proposal for a joint action establishing
measures to provide practical support in relation to the
reception and the voluntary repatriation of refugees, displaced
persons and asylum applicants (COM(1998) 733 final). The
proposal is based on work carried out under budget headings
B5-803 and B7-6008 during the same period.