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European strategies for health and safety at work: the impact of the EU Framework Directive 89/391, by David Walters

About the Author

David Walters is Professor of Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health
at South Bank University, London.

He has a Ph.D. in the labor relations of occupational health and his main
research interests continue to concern the social relations of occupational
health and safety management, particularly the role of employee participation.
Additional interests include regulatory policy and strategy, training needs,
strategies for health and safety management in small enterprises and preventive
services in occupational health and safety. David Walters is the author of a
number research reports, books and articles on these subjects.

Abstract

In 1989 the European Union (EU) adopted a new legislative strategy to improve health and safety at work. Through a combination of measures in the Framework Directive 391/89 obliging employers to undertake workplace risk assessment, use competent preventive services and social dialogue, it sought to improve the management of health and safety in all enterprises in Europe.

At the same time as this legislative strategy was being put in place major contextual change was taking place. Patterns of employment and the organisation of work have changed in the past decade, the consequences for health and safety present new challenges for the operation of legislative reforms. These challenges are only partially met in most European member states. The continued deregulation of employment, reduced public expenditure and reduced trade union presence mean that the operation of strategies to implement a common framework of European Union legislation is limited and often incomplete.

The paper will examine the situation with regard to the implementation and operation of examples of key features of the EU Framework in different European countries exemplifying some of the diverse range of situations found amongst the member states of the EU. The countries concerned are the Netherlands, the UK, Denmark and Greece. In addition it presents a synthesis on the broader issues which affect implementation and operation of the Directive's provisions on the management of occupational health and safety. Despite the major strategic departure from the traditional approaches to health and safety regulation that is represented by the EU Framework Directive, and the rapidly changing nature of work and the labour market since its adoption, there has been surprisingly little analysis of its impact in EU member states. The paper will outline a new study to examine the processes which have influenced, supported or constrained the interpretation and implementation of measures derived from the EU Framework Directive within the counties concerned and to analyse the factors that influenced the origins and form of the EU Framework Directive and its reception.