Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2005, published 95th ILC session (2006)

Asbestos Convention, 1986 (No. 162) - Colombia (Ratification: 2001)

1. The Committee takes note of the Government’s reports. It requests the Government to provide in its next report supplementary information and clarification on the following points.

2. The Government is asked to describe the procedures which should be prescribed in pursuance of Article 6, paragraph 2, of the Convention establishing that whenever two or more employers undertake activities simultaneously at one workplace, they shall cooperate in order to comply with the prescribed measures, without prejudice to the responsibility of each employer for the health and safety of the workers he or she employs.

3. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the provisions of national laws and regulations ensuring that:

-         exposure to asbestos is prevented or controlled by one of the measures mentioned in Article 9 (adequate engineering controls or special rules including authorization for the use of asbestos);

-         protection of workers’ health is guaranteed by measures mentioned in Article 10 (replacement of asbestos by other materials or a prohibition of the use of asbestos);

-         the prohibition of crocidolite and products containing this fibre is established (Article 11);

-         the prohibition of spraying of all forms of asbestos is established
(Article 12);

-         employers shall notify to the competent authority certain types of work involving exposure to asbestos (Article 13);

-         producers and suppliers of asbestos and manufacturers and suppliers of products containing asbestos shall be made responsible for adequate labelling of the container and, where appropriate, the products, in a language and manner easily understood by the workers and the users concerned, as prescribed by the competent authority (Article 14);

-         the exposure limits and other exposure criteria shall be fixed and periodically reviewed and updated in the light of technological progress and advances in technological and scientific knowledge (Article 15, paragraph 2, in conjunction with Article 3, paragraph 2).

4. The Government is requested to supply information on measures taken or envisaged in order to give effect to Article 16 (employer’s obligation to take practical measures for the prevention and control of the exposure of the workers he or she employs to asbestos and for their protection against the hazards due to asbestos), Article 17 (permission to carry out demolition of plants or structures containing friable asbestos insulation materials, and removal of asbestos from buildings or structures in which asbestos is liable to become airborne for employers or contractors recognized by the competent authority as qualified to carry out such work), Article 18, paragraph 3 (prohibition to take home of work clothing and special protective clothing and of personal protective equipment), and Article 19 (employers’ obligation to dispose of waste containing asbestos in a manner that does not pose a health risk to the workers concerned, including those handling asbestos waste, or to the population in the vicinity of the enterprise), Article 20, paragraphs 2 and 3 (the employer’s obligation to keep the records of the monitoring of the working environment and of the exposure of workers to asbestos for a period prescribed by the competent authority and the workers’ and their representatives’ possibility to have access to these records).