Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

Maximum Weight Convention, 1967 (No. 127) - Poland (Ratification: 1973)

The Committee notes the observations of the Independent and Self-Governing Trade Union (NSZZ) “SOLIDARNOSC”, received on 3 September 2014, as well as the Government’s reply to these observations, received on 29 September 2014.

Article 8 of the Convention. Application in law and in practice of the Convention, and consultation of the social partners. The Committee notes the information in the Government’s report that tasks were carried out between 2011 and 2013 by the Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute, under the second stage of the multi-annual programme entitled Improvement of Safety and Working Conditions, established by a Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 154/2010 of 21 September 2010, in order to reinforce the application in practice of the Convention regarding associated risks of musculoskeletal disorders. The Committee notes the various developmental programmes which were carried out during that period and that a third stage of the programme, established by Decision of the Council of Ministers No. 126/2013 of 16 July 2013, shall continue its implementation from 2014 to 2016. The Committee further notes from the Government’s report that the inspections carried out by the National Labour Inspectorate (NLI) in the retail sector indicate improvements in compliance with the occupational health and safety (OSH) regulations on manual movement of weights, as a result of the law which requires giving a position-specific briefing to employees, especially at large-area commercial establishments, and as a result of systematic inspections in the commercial sector carried out by the NLI between 2009 and 2013. The Committee also notes from the Government’s report that in health-care institutions, there have also been improvements in compliance with the OSH regulations on manual movement of weights and that in 2012, employment inspectors issued 11 decisions ordering the introduction of organisational and technical solutions aimed at the reduction of physical effort while relocating patients, while in 2013, only one such decision was issued.

The Committee notes the that the NSZZ “SOLIDARNOSC” highlights from the NLI’s reports that standards and principles of compliance in manual handling is not listed amongst the controlled issues by the NLI, and that there is no data on campaigns about the principles of manual handling conducted in the years 2009–14. The Committee notes the trade union’s statement that it finds it alarming that no required OSH training was conducted by 25 per cent of employers engaged in commercial establishments where loads are handled manually on a daily basis, and in 28 per cent of the institutions there were no OSH duties performed. The NSZZ “SOLIDARNOSC” further states that from the summary of controls carried out in the health sector, they do not observe any improvements of working conditions in terms of manual handling leading to a large-scale problem for which there is no plan for significant improvement. According to the trade union, although in 2007 the NLI implemented the “Lighten the Load” Campaign, and the Central Institute for Labour Protection included issues related to manual handling in its long-term programme for improvement of working conditions – phase II (2011–13), none of these actions have a continuation beyond the abovementioned programme’s third phase (2014–16) and that there is no information on the number of workers and employers involved in these activities, nor are there examples of good practice, making it difficult to assess their effectiveness. The Committee notes the information in the Government’s reply to the comments made by the NSZZ “SOLIDARNOSC”, that the NLI, during inspection of commercial entities, checks compliance with standards for objects moved by employees and that the necessary auxiliary equipment for mitigating the arduousness of, and the risks related to, manual handling of objects is ensured. The Government indicates that, from the results of inspections carried out in 2013, only a small percentage of facilities were not in compliance and, therefore, this information was omitted from the reports of the NLI. The Government also indicates that preventive activities on the manual handling of loads were included in the NLI’s programmes in 2007 and 2009, and several publications were issued concerning protection of the musculoskeletal system during manual transportation activities. The Government recognizes that, between 2009 and 2014, there have not been any preventive campaigns on correct manual handling, but specifies that this issue is covered by the inspection activities of the NLI. The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to strengthen the application of the Convention in practice, in consultation with the NSZZ “SOLIDARNOSC”, and to continue to provide information with regard to ensuring that OSH training on the manual transport of loads is given to workers, as raised by the trade union. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results of the third phase, 2014–16, of the Improvement of Safety and Working Conditions programme.