G l o b a l a n d N a t i o n a l Situation in O S H

New safety and health issues emerge

as work changes
A new report on Occupational Safety and
Health (OSH), published ahead of the
World Day for Safety and Health at Work
on 28 April, reviews the I L O ’ s 100 years
of achievements, and reveals some of the
emerging challenges and opportunities in

creating better working

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https://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/newsroom/news/WCMS_686571/lang--en/index.ht
Growing challenges include psychosocial risks, work-related
stress and non-communicable diseases, notably circulatory and
respiratory diseases, and cancers.

Safety and Health at the heart of the Future of

Work: Building on 100 years of experience, is being
published ahead of the World Day for Safety and
Health at Work
Currently, more than 374 million people are injured or made
ill every year through work-related accidents. It is estimated
that work days lost to OSH-related causes represent almost 4
per cent of global GDP, in some countries as much as 6 per
cent, the Report says.
Manal Azzi, ILO Technical Specialist on

Occupational Safety and Health

As well as the economic cost
we
must recognize the
immeasurable human suffering
such illnesses and
accidents cause. These are all-
the-
more tragic because they are largely
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tizaptsioynch, orsobcoiatilcsh,eanltdh and introduce
new materials with unmeasured health hazards.
Correctly applied it can also help reduce
hazardous exposures, facilitate training and labour
inspections.
Demographic shifts are important because young
workers have significantly high occupational injury rates,
while older workers need adaptive practices and
equipment to work safely. Women – who are entering the
workforce in –
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hahvigehneor n-srtiaskndarodf musculoskeletal disorders.

The development and climate change give rise to risks
such as air pollution, heat stress, emerging
diseases, shifting weather and temperature
patterns that can bring job losses. Equally, new jobs
will be created through sustainable development
and
the green economy.
Finally, changes in the organization of work can bring

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example, insecurity, compromised privacy and
excessive work hours. Approximately 36 per cent of
the
rest time,
w o r l d or workforce OSH
’ s inadequate currently works
and social excessive
protections)
hours
and (more than 48 hours per week).
In the light of these challenges the study proposes six areas on
which policy makers and other stakeholders should focus.

These include
(1) more work on anticipating new and emerging OSH risks,
(2) adopting a more multidisciplinary approach and
(3) building stronger links to public health work.

Better public understanding of OSH issues is also needed.

The international labour standards and national legislation need

to be strengthened, something which will require
collaboration between Governments, workers and
stronger
By far the greatest proportion of current work-related
deaths – 86 per cent – come from disease. In the
region of 6,500 people a day die from occupational
diseases, compared to 1,000 from fatal occupational
accidents.

The greatest causes of mortality are circulatory

diseases (31 per cent), work-related cancers (26
per cent) and respiratory diseases (17 per cent).
Safety and health at work in the Philippines
https://www.ilo.org/manila/areasofwork/safety-and-health-at-work/lang--en/index.htm

Occupational accidents and diseases cause human

suffering and loss. Their economic cost is high, with some 2
million workers dying each year from work-related
accidents
and diseases, and the figure is on the increase in spite of
efforts to make inroads.
The Philippine Government estimates that 2.2 million
Filipino workers in medium and large enterprises
enjoy effective occupational safety and health ( O S H )
protection and services. In other words, 17 of 18
persons in the n a t i o n ’ s workforce of 38.8 million do

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aSntdudtihes informal sector pose risks and hazards.

 Definition of
the term national policy refers to Terms
the national policy on
occupational safety and health and the working
environment developed in accordance with the
principles
of Article 4 of the Occupational Safety and Health
Convention, 1981 (No. 155)

the term national system for occupational safety

and health or national system refers to the
infrastructure which provides the main framework for
implementing the national policy and national
programmes on occupational safety and health;
 the term national programme on occupational safety
and health or national programme refers to any
national programme that includes objectives to be
achieved in a predetermined time frame, priorities and
means of action formulated to improve occupational
safety and health, and means to assess progress;

the term a national preventative safety and health culture refers to

a culture in which the right to a safe and healthy working environment
is respected at all levels, where government, employers and workers
actively participate in securing a safe and healthy working environment
through a system of defined rights, responsibilities and
duties, and
where the principle of prevention is accorded the highest priority.
A national occupational safety and health culture
is one in which the right to a safe and healthy working
environment is respected at all levels, where governments,
employers and workers actively participate in securing a safe

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principle of prevention.
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARDS ACT

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of safety.
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Poor conditions can result to illness, injury, and death.
entails

https://cpbrd.congress.gov.ph/78-publications/791-occupational-safety-and-health-
standards-act

Book IV of the Labor Code of the Philippines outlines the

rules governing health, safety and social welfare benefits.
It also sets guidelines on fines and penalties.

Chapters I and I I of Title I specifically addresses medical and

dental services, as well as occupational safety and health

(OSH).
Most of the responsibility of setting standards is in the hands of
the Secretary of Labor and Employment.
The L a b o r Code has a provision on research and training to
promote OSH. In this regard, Executive Order No. 37 was
issued in 1987, creating the Occupational Safety and Health
Center as a research and training unit to develop OSH policies
that are effective, responsive, and sustainable.
The O S H provisions of the Labor Code can be seen as tilted in favor
of defining the different work-related injuries or casualties and
assigning corresponding benefits for workers and responsibilities for
employers.

The institutionalization of an O S H program appears to be in need of

details. Thus, to effectively promote the welfare of workers, a
comprehensive O S H policy is needed. This would minimize work-
related casualties and develop a safety- and health-oriented
workplace for the benefit of both employers and workers.
Related House Bills:

House Bills 6 4 (Nograles, K. et al.)

Status:
Approved by the House on 2016-12-13, transmitted to the
Senate on 2016-12-14 and received by the Senate on 2016-
12-14; House designated members for the Conference
Committee on 2017-05-29
The Wo r l d Health O r g a n i z a ti o n (WHO)
congratulates the Philippine government for p a s s i n g t h e
O c c u p a ti o n a l S a f e t y a n d H e a l t h S t a n d a r d s A c t o r t h e
Republic Act ( R A ) 11058.

Once implemented, this significant legislation will help curb the

increasing cases of diseases and injuries in the work
environment that confront the country.
According to the P h i l i p p i n e S t a ti s ti c s A u t h o r i t y , the total cases
of occupational diseases in workplaces reached over 125,000 in
2015. B a c k p a i n is the most common type of occupational
disease, making up 3 2 . 8 % o f the reported cases. This is followed
by e s s e n ti a l h y p e r t e n s i o n ( 1 1 . 5 % ) a n d n e c k a n d

shoulder pain ( 1 1 . 4 % ) .
Meanwhile, the most risky industry for workers was found to be in
a d m i n i s t r a ti v e a n d s u p p o r t s e r v i c e a c ti v i ti e s ( 3 4 . 3 % ) and
m a n u f a c t u r i n g i n d u s t r y ( 3 1 . 1 % ) , jointly comprising almost two
thirds of the total cases of occupational diseases in 2015.
With the RA 11058, e m p l oye rs a re n o w required to c o m p l y

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to refuse unsafe work, as well as providing facilities and
personal protective equipment for the workers, among others.
With this law, the Philippines comes closer to achieving the
Sustainable Development Goal 8.8 to p ro t e c t t h e l a b o u r r i g h t s a n d
p r o m o t e s a f e a n d s e c u r e w o r k i n g e n v i r o n m e n t s fo r all w o r ke rs .

It also boosts the implementation of the W H O - supported

O c c u p a ti o n a l H e a l t h a n d S a f e t y S e c t o r P l a n u n d e r t h e N a ti o n a l
E n v i r o n m e n t a l H e a l t h A c ti o n P l a n ( 2 0 1 7 - 2 0 2 2 ) .
With the RA 11058, employers are now
required to comply with occupational
safety
and health standards including informingWith achieving the Sustainable Development Goal
workers on all types of hazards in
this law, the Philippines comes closer to
the
workplace and having the right to refuse 8.8 to protect the labour rights and
promote unsafe work, as well as providing facilitie safnedand secure working
personal for all equipment for the workers. It also boosts the implementation of
protective
environments
workers, among others. the WHO-supported Occupational Health and

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2022).
protect the healththe
WHO commends of efforts
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https://www.who.int/philippines/news/detai
Philippines.
 health-standards-act-will-protect-the-health-

WHO commends the efforts of all stakeholders who

supported the passage of this law to protect the health of
workers in the Philippines.

https://www.who.int/philippines/news/detail/23-08 -2 0 1 8 -the-occupational-safety-and-health-