Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2012, published 102nd ILC session (2013)

Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81) - Greece (Ratification: 1955)

Further to its observation, the Committee would also like to raise the following points.

Articles 3(1) and 5(a)–(b). Labour inspection activities in the area of occupational safety and health. The Committee notes the detailed information provided in the 2010 annual report of the Hellenic Labour Inspectorate (SEPE) on activities in the area of occupational safety and health. It notes, among other things with interest, that in November 2010 a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the SEPE and the Hellenic Institute for Occupational Safety and Health which provides for cooperation between the two bodies in relation to technical support, training, research and awareness raising in a number of areas such as risk assessment and psychosocial risks. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the activities carried out in this framework and their impact on the effective discharge of the labour inspection functions.

Article 14. Recording and notification of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease. The Committee notes with interest from the Government’s report that article 43 of Act No. 3850/2010 provides that “[…] the employer is obliged to notify all industrial accidents within 24 hours to the competent Inspection Services, the local police stations and the Services of the competent insurance body with which the workers concerned are insured”. As regards the notification of occupational diseases, article 18 of Act No. 3850/2010 provides that “[…] the labour physician shall, through the enterprise, notify the labour inspectorate of occupational diseases amongst workers”, while article 19 of the same Act provides that “[…] in case the health unit of the insurance body or that of the National Health System (E.S.Y.) ascertains that a health problem has arisen, which is likely to be associated with the working environment, the competent labour inspection office and the labour physician employed by the undertaking are given all the necessary information about the event”. The Committee requests the Government to furnish any legal texts issued for the implementation of these provisions and provide information on the application of these provisions in practice and the impact they have had on the recording and notification of industrial accidents and cases of occupational disease, as well as the follow-up action taken by the SEPE in order to investigate such incidents and prevent their recurrence.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2013.]