Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2015, published 105th ILC session (2016)

Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155) - Türkiye (Ratification: 2005)

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in reply to its previous comment concerning measures to make available information and undertake studies concerning the correct installation and use of equipment and the correct use of substances (Article 12(b) of the Convention) and measures to deal with emergencies, accidents and first-aid arrangements (Article 18).

Articles 5(d) and 19(b). Communication and cooperation at the level of the undertaking. In its previous comment, the Committee took note of sections 18, 20 and 22 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act No. 6331 (OSH Act) concerning the involvement of workers and their representatives in OSH matters. It noted in particular that section 22(1) provides for the establishment of OSH committees in undertakings with at least 50 employees and where permanent work is performed for more than six months. The Committee notes that, in reply to the Committee’s request for information on the manner in which communication and cooperation are ensured in practice, the Government merely refers to abovementioned legal provisions. The Committee recalls that Articles 5(d) and 19(b) of the Convention provide for the cooperation of employers, workers and their representatives in the field of OSH at all the levels of the working group and at all the appropriate levels. In this regard, it draws the Government’s attention to the fact that under the Convention, the prescribed cooperation is not subject to any employee threshold or any period of time. Therefore, the Committee, again, requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which communication and cooperation at all the appropriate levels of the undertaking are ensured in practice, including information communicated to workers and their representatives and the frequency of consultations, and to indicate any specific measures taken with respect to undertakings which do not fulfil the prerequisites set by section 22(1) of the OSH Act, in particular subcontracting and works performed for less than six months.

Article 19(e). Right of workers or their representatives to inquire into all aspects of OSH associated with their work and recourse to external technical advisers. In its reply to the Committee’s previous comment on measures taken to give effect to Article 19(e) of the Convention, the Government refers to section 6 of the OSH Act on the right of employers to appoint workers as occupational safety specialists, occupational physicians and other health staff. Noting that section 6 of the OSH Act does not give effect to Article 19(e) of the Convention, the Committee, again, requests the Government to provide information on the manner in which effect is given, in law and in practice, to the right of workers or their representatives to inquire into all aspects of OSH associated with their work and their right to bring in technical advisers, by mutual agreement, from outside the undertaking.

Application in practice. Noting once again the absence of information on the application of the Convention in practice in the Government’s report, the Committee requests the Government to provide a general appreciation of the manner in which the Convention is applied in the country, including information on the number of workers covered by the legislation, inspection visits carried out, the number and nature of the contraventions reported, as well as statistics on the number, nature and causes of work-related accidents and cases of occupational diseases notified, etc.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2016.]