OSH as a Fundamental Right at Work

The right to a safe and healthy working environment was framed by the tripartite constituencies as a fundamental principle and right at work at the 2022 ILO International Labour Conference (ILC). This made occupational safety and health the fifth category of the Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (FPRW). The ILC declared that the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155) and the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187) shall be considered as fundamental Conventions within the meaning of the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (FPRW as amended 2022). Consequently, ILO Members, even if they have not ratified the Conventions in question, have now an obligation, arising from the very fact of their membership in the Organization, to respect, to promote and to realize, in good faith and in accordance with the Constitution, the principles concerning the fundamental rights, which are the subject of those Conventions. This course was therefore designed to strengthen the capacity of trade unions in Africa in adapting their trade union policies and strategies in line with the reality of OSH as a FRPW. The course provided the trade unions with the adequate knowledge, capacities and practical tools to engage and participate actively in promoting OSH as a FRPW at company, sectoral and national level. Furthermore, the course empowered the trade unions to effectively influence the policy makers and agenda regarding OSH through social dialogue. OBJECTIVES The training aimed at enabling participants to: 1. Promote the ratification, domestication and application of the two fundamental Conventions, the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155) and the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187), including their effective implementation at the national level. 2. Meaningfully engage and offer evidence-based proposals in the design and implementation of comprehensive OSH policies and guidelines at the national and workplace level, in light of OSH being a fundamental principle and right at work. 3. Ensure an inclusive approach to OSH interventions at the trade union level and advocate for an inclusive approach to OSH at the national level. 4. Identify and replicate where appropriate good practices on OSH at national and workplace levels. 5. Promote the adoption of environmental management and the adoption of greener practices that contribute to the elimination or reduction of OSH hazards to workers and their communities. CONTENT The course covered the following content(i) OSH Trends and Realities in Africa, (ii) the international labour standards on OSH and how to translate them into practice and reality for workers; (iii) regulatory, legislative and policy gaps and actions to align practice with ILO Conventions on OSH; (iv) the role of labour inspection in line with the reality of OSH as a FRPW; (v) new and inclusive approaches on strengthening OSH standards in collective bargaining agreements; (vi) strengthening OSH committtes; and, (vii) inclusive social dialogue, and labour relations institutions in the OSH ILO framework. Learners spent an average of 40 learning hours to complete the course. NUMBER OF HOURS: 40