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Social security can contribute to a global safety culture, says ISSA
The ISSA points to examples where targeted accident prevention policies by social security institutions have reduced the number of work accidents by between 25 and 50 per cent. In Côte d'Ivoire, for example, the social security institutions estimate that the number of declared accidents in the country have been reduced by 50% since the 1980s, and in the same period Niger has experienced a decrease of almost 25% in work accidents due to prevention measures and information for workers.
The cost of compensation, healthcare and invalidity for work-related accidents is significant, representing up to 3.8 per cent of global GDP in European Union countries and as much as 10 per cent of GDP in developing countries, recent studies indicate.
"Proactive and comprehensive prevention policies carried out by social security and occupational health and safety institutions can substantially reduce work-related accidents and illness levels, diminish the related human suffering and avoid the resulting economic losses," says the ISSA Secretary General Hans-Horst Konkolewsky. He gives the example of Germany, where social security experts estimate that accident prevention since the 1960s has saved industry up to 10 billion euros annually.
According to the International Labour Office (ILO), more than 2 million people die each year from work-related illness or accidents, and up to 270 million people are affected by non-fatal accidents. A growing number of occupational risks are related to new technologies, psychosocial issues and the increase of informal employment that has accompanied globalization. ISSA specialists point to the need for a global approach to tackle these new occupational safety challenges.
"An authentic global culture of prevention is needed to avoid that globalization results in the displacement of risks, pushing the heaviest risks onto the most fragile societies," says Mr. Jean-Luc Marié, Chair of the ISSA's Special Commission on Prevention, which represents a worldwide network of health and safety institutions. Mr. Marié points to the forthcoming World Congress on Safety and Health at Work as an opportunity for concerted political action for health and safety at the global level.
The XVIII World Congress is co-organized by the ISSA, the ILO and the Korean Occupational Health and Safety Agency, and will take place in Seoul, Republic of Korea, 29 June - 2 July 2008. The event will involve 3,000 safety and health experts, policy-makers, social security managers, and workers and employers' representatives.
As in previous years, the ISSA is supporting the World Day for Safety and Health at Work on 28 April 2008, which was initiated by the ILO to promote safe, healthy and decent work.
View the ILO/ISSA World Day poster and promotional resources:
http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/worldday/products/index.htm
Type: Press release
Topics: Occupational risks
Events: XVIII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work
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