1

OCCUPATIONAL
SAFETY AND
HEALTH
LEGISLATION

CHAPTER OUTLINE:

Chapter 1 OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH LEGISLATION

 Medical, Dental and Occupational Safety
 Occupational Health and Safety
 Rules and Regulations Implementing the Labor Code

Learning Objectives:
1. Understand the Medical, Dental and Occupational Safety
2. State the Occupational Health and Safety
3. Understand the Rules and Regulations Implementing the Labor Code
Basic Occupational Health and Safety

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH LEGISLATION

TITLE I

MEDICAL, DENTAL AND OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY

Art. 154. First-aid treatment. Every employer shall keep in his establishment such first-aid medicines
and equipment as the nature and conditions of work may require, in accordance with such regulations
as the Department of Labor and Employment shall prescribe.

The employer shall take steps for the training of a sufficient number of employees in first-aid
treatment.

Art. 155. Emergency medical and dental services. It shall be the duty of every employer to furnish
his employees in any locality with free medical and dental attendance and facilities consisting of:
(a) The services of a full-time registered nurse when the number of employees exceeds fifty (50) but
not more than two hundred (200) except when the employer does not maintain hazardous
workplaces, in which case, the services of a graduate first-aider shall be provided for the protection of
workers, where no registered nurse is available. The Department of Labor and Employment shall
provide by appropriate regulations, the services that shall be required where the number of
employees does not exceed fifty (50) and shall determine by appropriate order, hazardous
workplaces for purposes of this Article.
(b) The services of a full-time registered nurse, a part-time physician and dentist, and an emergency
clinic, when the number of employees exceeds two hundred (200) but not more than three hundred
(300); and
(c) The services of a full-time physician, dentist and a full-time registered nurse as well as a dental
clinic and an infirmary or emergency hospital with one bed capacity for every one hundred (100)
employees when the number of employees exceeds three hundred (300).

In cases of hazardous workplaces, no employer shall engage the services of a physician or a dentist
who cannot stay in the premises of the establishment for at least two (2) hours, in the case of those
engaged on part-time basis, and not less than eight (8) hours, in the case of those employed on full-
time basis. Where the undertaking is non-hazardous in nature, the physician and dentist may be
engaged on retainer basis, subject to such regulations as the Department of Labor and Employment
may prescribe to insure immediate availability of medical and dental treatment and attendance in
case of emergency. (As amended by Presidential Decree NO. 570-A, Section 25)

Art. 156. When emergency hospital not required. This requirement for an emergency hospital or
dental clinic shall not be applicable in case there is a hospital or dental clinic which is accessible from
the employer’s establishment and he makes arrangement for the reservation therein of the necessary
beds and dental facilities for the use of his employees.

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Art. 157. Health program. The physician engaged by an employer shall, in addition to his duties
under this Chapter, develop and implement a comprehensive occupational health program for the
benefit of the employees of his employer.

Art. 158. Qualifications of health personnel. The physicians, dentists and nurses employed by
employers pursuant to this Chapter shall have the necessary training in industrial medicine and
occupational safety and health. The Department of Labor and Employment, in consultation with
industrial, medical, and occupational safety and health associations, shall establish the qualifications,
criteria and conditions of employment of such health personnel.

Art. 159. Assistance of employer. It shall be the duty of any employer to provide all the necessary
assistance to ensure the adequate and immediate medical and dental attendance and treatment to an
injured or sick employee in case of emergency.

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY

Art. 160. Safety and health standards. The Secretary of Labor and Employment shall, by
appropriate orders, set and enforce mandatory occupational safety and health standards to eliminate
or reduce occupational safety and health hazards in all workplaces and institute new, and update
existing, programs to ensure safe and healthful working conditions in all places of employment.

Art. 161. Research. It shall be the responsibility of the Department of Labor and Employment to
conduct continuing studies and research to develop innovative methods, techniques and approaches
for dealing with occupational safety and health problems; to discover latent diseases by establishing
causal condition between diseases and work in environmental conditions; and to develop medical
criteria which will ensure insofar as practicable that no employees will suffer impairment or diminution
in health, functional capacity, or life expectancy as a result of his work and working conditions.

Art. 162. Training programs. The Department of Labor and Employment shall develop and
implement training programs to increase the number and competence of personnel in the field of
occupational safety and industrial health.
(a) The Department of Labor and Employment shall be solely responsible for the administration and
enforcement of occupational safety and health laws, regulations and standards in all establishments
and workplaces wherever they may be located; however, chartered cities may be allowed to conduct
industrial safety inspections of establishments within their respective jurisdictions where they have
adequate facilities and competent personnel for the purpose as determined by the Department of
Labor and Employment and subject to national standards established by the latter.
(b) The Department of Labor and Employment may, through appropriate regulations, collect
reasonable fees for the inspection of steam boilers, pressure vessels and pipings and electrical
installations, the test and approval for safe use of materials, equipment and other safety devices and
the approval of plans for such materials, equipment and devices. The fee so collected shall be
deposited in the national treasury to the credit of the occupational safety and health fund and shall be
expended exclusively for the administration and enforcement of safety and other labor laws
administered by the Department of Labor and Employment (As amended by Presidential Decree No.
570-A, Section 27.)

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Basic Occupational Health and Safety

RULES AND REGULATIONS IMPLEMENTING THE LABOR CODE

BOOK IV

Health, Safety and Welfare Benefits

RULE I

Medical and Dental Services

SECTION 1. Coverage. — This Rule shall apply to all employers, whether operating for profit or not,
including the Government and any of its political subdivisions and government-owned or controlled
corporations, which employs in any workplace one or more workers.
The development and enforcement of dental standards shall continue to be under the responsibility of
the Bureau of Dental Health Services of the Department of Health.

SECTION 2. Definitions. — As used in this Rule, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated hereunder unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(a) "First-aid treatment" means adequate, immediate and necessary medical and dental attention or
remedy given in case of injury or sudden illness suffered by a worker during employment, irrespective
of whether or not such injury or illness is work-connected, before more extensive medical and/or
dental treatment can be secured. It does not include continued treatment or follow-up treatment for an
injury or illness.
(b) "Work place" means the office, premises or work site where the workers are habitually employed
and shall include the office or place where the workers who have no fixed or definite work site
regularly report for assignment in the course of their employment.
(c) "First-aider" means any person trained and duly certified as qualified to administer first aid by the
Philippine National Red Cross or by any other organization accredited by the former.

SECTION 3. Medicines and facilities. — Every employer shall keep in or about his work place the
first-aid medicines, equipment and facilities that shall be prescribed by the Department of Labor and
Employment within 5 days from the issuance of these regulations. The list of medicines, equipment
and facilities may be revised from time to time by the Bureau of Working Conditions, subject to the
approval of the Secretary of Labor and Employment.

SECTION 4. Emergency medical and dental services. — Any employer covered by this Rule shall
provide his employees medical and dental services and facilities in the following cases and manner:
(a) When the number of workers is from 10 to 50 in a work place, the services of a graduate first-aider
shall be provided who may be one of the workers in the work place and who has immediate access to
the first-aid medicines prescribed in Section 3 of this Rule.

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(b) Where the number of workers exceeds 50 but not more than 200, the services of a full-time
registered nurse shall be provided. However, if the work place is non-hazardous, the services of a
full-time first-aider may be provided if a nurse is not available.
(c) Where the number of workers in a work place exceeds 200 but not more than 300, the services of
a full-time registered nurse, a part-time physician and a part-time dentist, and an emergency clinic
shall be provided, regardless of the nature of the undertaking therein. The physician and dentist
engaged for such work place shall stay in the premises for at least two (2) hours a day; Provided,
However, that where the establishment has more than one (1) work shift a day, the required two-hour
stay shall be devoted to the work shift which has the biggest number of workers and they shall, in
addition to the requirements of this Rule, be subject to call at any time during the other work shifts to
attend to emergency cases.
(d) Where the number of workers in a hazardous work place exceeds 300, the services of a full-time
nurse, a full-time physician, a full-time dentist, a dental clinic and an infirmary or emergency hospital
with one-bed capacity for every 100 workers shall be provided. The physician and dentist shall stay in
the premises of the work place for at least eight (8) hours a day; Provided, However, that where the
work place has more than one (1) work shift a day, they shall be at work place during the work shift
which has the biggest number of workers and they shall be subject to call at anytime during the other
work shifts to attend to emergency cases. Where the undertaking in such a work place is non-
hazardous in nature, the employer may engage the services of a part-time physician and a part-time
dentist who shall have the same responsibilities as those provided in sub-section (c) of this Section,
and shall engage the services of a full-time registered nurse.
(e) In all work places where there are more than one (1) work shift in a day, the employer shall, in
addition to the requirements of this Rule, provide the services of a full-time first-aider for each
workshift.

SECTION 5. Emergency hospital. — An employer need not put up an emergency hospital or dental
clinic in the work place as required in these regulations where there is a hospital or dental clinic which
is not more than five (5) kilometers away from the work place if situated in any urban area or which
can be reached by motor vehicle in twenty-five (25) minutes of travel, if situated in a rural area and
the employer has facilities readily available for transporting a worker to the hospital or clinic in case of
emergency: Provided, That the employer shall enter into a written contract with the hospital or dental
clinic for the use thereof in the treatment of workers in case of emergency.

SECTION 6. Training and qualifications of medical and dental personnel. — The health
personnel required to be hired by an employer pursuant to the Code and these Rules shall have the
following minimum qualifications:
(a) A first-aider must be able to read and write and must have completed a course in first-aid duly
certified by the National Red Cross or any other organization accredited by the same.
(b) A nurse must have passed the examination given by the Board of Examiners and duly licensed to
practice nursing in the Philippines and preferably with at least fifty (50) hours of training in
occupational nursing conducted by the Department of Health, the Institute of Public Health of the
University of the Philippines or by any organization accredited by the former.
(c) A physician, whether permanent or part-time, must have passed the examinations given by the
Board of Examiners for physicians, is licensed to practice medicine in the Philippines, and is
preferably a graduate of a training course in occupational medicine conducted by the Bureau of
Working Conditions, the Institute of Public Health of the University of the Philippines or any
organization duly accredited by the former.

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Basic Occupational Health and Safety

(d) A dentist, whether permanent or part-time, must have passed the examinations given by the
Board of Examiners for dentists, is licensed to practice dentistry in the Philippines, and preferably has
completed a training course in occupational dentistry conducted by the Bureau of Dental Health
Services of the Department of Health or any organization duly accredited by the former.

SECTION 7. Opportunity for training. — Nurses, physicians, and dentists employed by covered
employers on the date the Code becomes effective and who do not possess the special training
qualifications provided in this Rule may attend the respective training courses pertinent to their field of
specialization. The Bureau of Working Conditions shall initiate the organization and carrying out of
appropriate training programs for nurses, physicians and dentists in coordination with the government
agencies or private organizations referred to in the preceding Section.

SECTION 8. Hazardous work places. — The Bureau of Working Conditions, shall, with the approval
of the Secretary of Labor and Employment, issue from time to time a detailed list of hazardous work
places for purposes of this Rule, in addition to the following:
(a) Where the nature of the work exposes the workers to dangerous environmental elements,
contaminations or work conditions including ionizing radiations, chemicals, fire, flammable
substances, noxious components and the like.
(b) Where the workers are engaged in construction work, logging, fire-fighting, mining, quarrying,
blasting, stevedoring, dock work, deep-sea fishing and mechanized farming.
(c) Where the workers are engaged in the manufacture or handling of explosives and other
pyrotechnic products.
(d) Where the workers use or are exposed to heavy or power-driven machinery or equipment.
(e) Where the workers use or are exposed to power-driven tools.

SECTION 9. Health program. — The physician engaged by an employer pursuant to this Rule shall,
in addition to providing medical services to the workers in cases of emergency, perform among
others, the following duties:
(a) Conduct pre-employment medical examination, free of charge, for the proper selection and
placement of workers;
(b) Conduct free of charge annual physical examination of the workers;
(c) Collaborate closely with the safety and technical personnel of the establishment to assure
selection and placement of workers from the standpoint of physical, mental, physiological and
psychological suitability, including investigation of accidents where the probable causes are exposure
to occupational health hazards; and
(d) Develop and implement a comprehensive occupational health program for the employees of the
establishment. A report shall be submitted annually to the Bureau of Working Conditions describing
the program established and the implementation thereof.

SECTION 10. Medical and dental records.

(a) The employer shall furnish the Bureau of Working Conditions with copies of all contracts of
employment of medical personnel and contracts with hospitals or clinics as provided in Section 5 of
this Rule.
(b) The employer shall maintain a record of all medical examinations, treatments and medical
activities undertaken.
(c) The employer shall submit reports in such form, and containing such information, as the Bureau of
Working Conditions may require from time to time.

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Basic Occupational Health and Safety

REFERENCES
Books/Reference

1. Effective Safety Management System

Videolinks:

(554) Occupational Safety & Health Philippines | Legislations Standards Inspections Training - YouTube

(554) Occupational Safety and Health (Health Animation) - YouTube

(554) Occupational Safety and Health (Occupational Safety and Health Center) - YouTube

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