Demande directe (CEACR) - adoptée 2015, publiée 105ème session CIT (2016)

Convention (n° 119) sur la protection des machines, 1963 - Koweït (Ratification: 1964)

Article 4 of the Convention in conjunction with Article 2. Obligation of the vendor, the person letting out on hire, or transferring the machinery and of the manufacturer, to ensure application of safety measures. The Committee notes the Government’s reference to Ministerial Order No. 198 of 2010 concerning workplace requirements and conditions to protect workers against occupational hazards. Chapter 3 of Ministerial Order No. 198 of 2010 concerns requirements with respect to machinery, and section 40 states that selling, exhibiting, transferring, letting out on hire or using machines whose dangerous parts lack sufficient means of protection shall be prohibited.

The Committee refers to paragraph 165 of its 1987 General Survey on safety in the working environment, and recalls that a general prohibition of manufacturing, selling, hiring or transferring dangerous machinery is inadequate if it is not accompanied by a provision explicitly requiring these provisions be applied by the manufacturer, vendor, the person letting out on hire or transferring the machinery, or their respective agents. Article 4 of the Convention expressly establishes the responsibility of these persons to avoid any ambiguity. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to explicitly establish that the obligation to ensure compliance with the prohibition contained in Article 2 of the Convention rests on the vendor, the person letting out on hire or transferring the machinery in any other manner, or the exhibitor as appropriate in accordance with Article 4.

Application in practice. The Committee previously noted that the accident rate associated with machines was relatively high (18 per cent) in comparison with accidents associated with other economic activities.

The Committee notes the Government’s statement that measures taken by the Government to reduce accidents associated with machines include increasing the number of inspectors in order to increase the number of inspection visits, and raising awareness among inspectors to ensure quality inspection campaigns. The Committee also notes the statistical information provided by the Government indicating that the number of occupational accidents caused by machinery was 448 accidents in 2011 (representing approximately 21 per cent of all occupational accidents), 323 accidents in 2012 (18 per cent of all occupational accidents) and 298 in 2013 (18 per cent of all occupational accidents). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on measures taken to reduce the number of workplace accidents caused by machinery and on the impact of these measures. It also requests the Government to continue to provide statistical information on the application of the Convention in practice, including the number, nature and cause of accidents reported.