Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Occupational Health Services Convention, 1985 (No. 161) - Colombia (Ratification: 2001)

With reference to its observation, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on the following points.

Legislation. The Committee notes that the Government has provided a copy of Decree of No. 2923 of 12 August 2011 establishing the quality control system of the General Occupational Risks System. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the impact of this Decree on the application of the present Convention.

Article 9(1). Multidisciplinary nature of occupational health services. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that section 2 of Decision No. 1016 refers to the inter-disciplinary nature of the occupational health programme, which also benefits from the advice of the occupational risk administrators (ARPs). Please indicate the manner in which the Government ensures compliance with this Article.

Article 10. Full professional independence of the personnel providing occupational health services from employers, workers and their representatives. Article 11. Determination by the competent authority of the qualifications required for the personnel providing occupational health services. Article 14. Obligation of the employer and of workers to inform the occupational health services of any known factors and any suspected factors in the working environment which may affect the workers’ health. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes that the Government has not provided information on the effect given to these Articles and it once again requests the Government to provide information on these subjects.

Article 15. Notification to occupational health services of occurrences of ill health among workers and absence from work in order to be able to identify whether there is any relation between ill-health and any health hazards. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the Single Confederation of Workers (CUT) and the Confederation of Workers of Colombia (CTC), this provision is not applied and workers have to wait to be affected by a chronic or degenerative disease before being able to address their employer or insurers for the respective studies to be commenced. The Committee notes that, according to the Government’s report, the obligation to report employment accidents and occupational diseases rests with employers and that the diagnosis of occupational diseases has increased from 23.6 per thousand workers in 2000 to 138 per thousand workers in 2010. The Committee points out that this Article requires, not the notification of the competent authorities, but that occupational health services shall be informed, with a view to identifying whether there is any relation between ill health and health risks, but that the Government’s report appears to be referring to notification of the competent authority. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether information is provided to occupational health services for the purpose indicated in this Article.