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ILO chief calls for culture of prevention in workplace

Xinhua, April 28, 2015 Adjust font size:

International Labor Organization (ILO) director general Guy Ryder highlighted on Monday the importance of building a culture of prevention on occupational safety and health in light of World Day for Safety and Health at Work which takes place on April 28.

In a statement issued on Monday, the ILO chief said that more than 313 million workers suffer non-fatal occupational injuries every year, which equates to 860,000 people being injured on the job on a daily basis.

Ryder added 6,400 people die from an occupational accident or disease every day, amounting to 2.3 million deaths each year.

The director general highlighted the high economic cost of neglecting workplace safety regulations as 2.8 trillion U.S. dollars are lost annually because of lost working time, interruptions in production, treatment of occupational injuries and diseases, rehabilitation and economic compensation.

Occupational safety and health has been recognized as a fundamental human right since the 2008 Seoul Declaration on Safety and Health at work. ILO has now called for urgent action to be taken to build a culture of prevention on occupational safety and health.

Ryder affirmed that this can be achieved by respecting at all levels the right to a safe and healthy work environment, by encouraging the participation of key stakeholders in securing such an environment through established rights and duties, and by according the highest priority to the principle of prevention.

This culture of prevention is built on and maintained by engaging a range of partners including governments, workers, employers and their organizations, specialists and experts, he added.

"Good practices should be shared, promoted and emulated where possible and partnerships forged to accelerate progress towards building a global culture of prevention," he added. Endit