Incorporate occupational health and safety into ILO fundamental principles urgently, says ETI

ETI has written to both ILO and IOE to request that proposals to include occupational health and safety (OSH) within the ILO’s framework of fundamental principles and rights at work be actioned urgently.

The ILO Centenary Declaration for the Future of Work (2019) declared that “safe and healthy working conditions are fundamental to decent work”, and a subsequent conference resolution recommended that the governing body urgently consider proposals for including OSH in the framework in the same way as the 8 fundamental ILO Conventions do.

The Covid-19 Pandemic has accelerated the need to protect workers’ health and safety, but despite the 2019 declaration, and the adoption of an implementation roadmap, OSH is yet to become a fundamental right in the world of work.

Peter McAllister, ETI’s Executive Director, writes: “The UN Guiding Principles for Business & Human Rights provide the framework to identify and address risks to workers. OHS has been critical to the operation of supply chains both prior to and during the pandemic, and has therefore attracted commitment, investment and resources ensuring workers are safe.

“Members contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals through their business practices also recognize that safe and healthy work is the foundation of sustainable development and is intrinsically linked to SDG 3 and SDG 8. We therefore urge governments, the lnternational Organisation of Employers and the lnternational Labour Organisation to implement the above declaration and action the road map of implementation as a matter of urgency.”

You can read the full text of the letter, and for ETI members a briefing paper on the issue, here.